Harmanpreet Singh was expected to be the big draw at the Hockey India League 2024-25 auction and the Indian captain did not disappoint, becoming the costliest buy at Rs 78 lakh on day one of the bidding on Sunday.
The ace drag-flicker was bought by Soorma Hockey Club, the team owned by JSW Sports and led the list of Indian national team players going for much higher than expected and several times over their base price of Rs. 10 lakh.
Abhishek Nain was the second-most expensive buy at 72 lakh, taken by Shrachi Rarh Bengal Tigers, while India vice-captain Hardik Singh was snapped by UP Rudras for 70 lakh. Jugraj Singh (Bengal) and Amit Rohidas (Tamil Nadu Dragons) at 48 lakh each completed the top-Indian buys with most of the national team members going for decent amounts.
Gurjant Singh and Mandeep Singh, however, would feel unlucky, being the first names up for sale and getting only 19 and 25 lakhs respectively as the teams started tentatively before getting a hang of things.
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Among the overseas players, Gonzalo Peillat unsurprisingly was the top pick, triggering a furious bidding war with every franchise aiming for him before going for a massive 68 lakh to Hyderabad Toofans. The Argentine-turned-German became the 4th most-expensive player so far, pipping Dutch drag-flicker Jip Janssen as the top foreign player, the latter going for 54 lakh to Tamil Nadu Dragons.
Youngsters Araijit Singh Hundal and Rohit too had productive outings, picked for 42 lakh (Gonasika) and 40 lakh (SG Pipers) respectively. Australian forward Jeremy Hayward (JSW, 42 lakh) and Dutchman Lars Balk (UP, 40 lakh) were the other prominent foreign buys even as veteran goalkeeper Andrew Charter went unsold.
The auction also saw some confusion when Dutch goalkeeper Maurits Visser came up for bidding before the franchises were informed that he had withdrawn his name, forcing last-minute adjustments. What was unanimous was the feeling that the 4cr purse was too little.
“It was not possible to change things at the last minute and we also did not want to burden the teams in the very first year. The auction is for three years but we will talk to the franchises and consider everything after the 1st year and look at the possibility of increasing the purse next year,” Hockey India president Dilip Tirkey admitted.
