Ben Stokes leads the list of big money names that were bought at the recent Indian Premier League auction. He was signed for £1.7m by Rising Pune Supergiants in their second season, following the suspension of Chennai Super Kings and Rajasthan Royals. The previous record for an overseas player was South African David Miller, whom Kings Xi Punjab paid £1.5m for in 2014. Stokes described the moment he was bought as “complete carnage”.
The all-rounder will share the field with the likes of Kevin Pietersen, MS Dhoni and Faf du Plessis as well as several other well-known stars. Stokes is now regarded as one of England’s most influential and exciting batsmen and his arrival onto the stage that is the IPL is long overdue.
The Durham native, known for his fiery outbursts and passion on the field, will be a welcome addition at some of India’s top cricketing venues, which are always a cauldron of noise when the IPL comes around.
Stokes will no doubt want to eradicate the memories of last year’s World T20 when he was victim to some lethal batting by West Indies batsman Carlos Brathwaite, which ultimately cost England the title.
https://youtu.be/mblNOiI8pbQ
The question remains where Stokes will fit into the side, with the likes of Dhoni, Pietersen and Du Plessis in the team. He is at his most destructive when he has enough overs to face and would not want to be wasted down the order.
However, it could still work in Stokes’ favour that Aussie skipper Steve Smith, who was retained by RPS, will be on tour in India, potentially opening the door for Stokes to bat higher in the order.
Stokes hasn’t let that infamous night in Kolkata affect him endlessly though, with him regularly bowling the death overs for England in recent times, showing the desire to perform when it counts has not disappeared from his character.
That can only be a positive for Rising Pune Supergiants for the upcoming season.
The IPL starts on April 5 and ends on May 21.
Welcome to Pune @benstokes38 first round is on you!
— Steve Smith (@stevesmith49) February 20, 2017
If Carlsberg did Cricket weeks @benstokes38 … Named England VC & then picked up for £1.7m in the #IPL … #NiceWork
— Michael Vaughan (@MichaelVaughan) February 20, 2017
Kerching! Stokes & Mills picked up for big bucks by @RPSupergiants & @RCBTweets respectively ???#VIVOIPLauction
— mark butcher (@markbutcher72) February 20, 2017
