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Craig HillIPL player auction - Now That's just ridiculous
February 26th 2008 02:51
Just when you thought the whole idea of the IPL player auction couldn't get more crazy...
it has. The actual auction has taken place and is full of such bizarre contradictions and extravagent spending that you would think that there is no poverty in India and that the streets are paved with gold.
Now before we begin with the analysis of this draft let's just take a moment to consider that the all conquering Australian team are supposedly touring Pakistan during the duration of the competition meaning they would have a limited influence on the tournament.
So let's start with Andrew Symonds - the $1.47million dollat man [insert cash register noises here]. Mr Symonds has been blessed with circumstances here. The big hitting awesome fielding Australian would be the perfect 20/20 cricketer. But with Australia going on tour no one would pay that amount of money from him right? Well his own incredible stupidity actually helped up his price. He claimed that he would not go to Pakistan even if the rest of his team went as it was too dangerous. So far so good. He then went on to say that it was his undrstanding that all international tours were on an invitational basis and that he would kindly decline the Cricket Australia offer to tour. He obviously hasn't read his Cricket Australia contract and my guess on the basis of those comments is that he isn't the smartest joker in the pack (and when we are talking Australian cricketers, that's not a very smart pack to begin with). His comments were lept upon those who also can't read with glee that he would be playing in India no matter what. So Hyderabad forked out $1.47 million dollars for his talents on the assumption that he would be playing for them no matter what only to find that in his Cricket Australia contract if he refused to go to Pakistan they could (would and should) stop him playing for the mercenary money in India.
If Symonds is a little dim then perhaps he gets some of it from his captain Ricky Ponting. In a press conference after the auction Ricky P claimed he was 'dissappointed' with getting 'only $400,000 ' in the auction. He wondere why that was - maybe his poor form around the time of the auction but he wondered aloud that maybe it was the Harbhajan Singh incident at the Sydney test though he noted his international teamate at the centre of it was now Mr $1.47million. Punter did some more pontificating on the reasons - he sais he's always been good at endorsements (A fact that I cannot deny as I have seen him whore hiimself out for ads for vitamins, deodurants, cars, phones, banks, fried chicken and oils - you know what I mean). BUT RICKY, baby, DO YOU HONESTLY THINK ANYONE IS GOING TO FEEL SORRY FOR YOU BECAUSE YOU ARE ONLY GETTING $400,000 to play 40 days of cricket????? I tell you cricketers are going to get a bad name.
That is with the exception of Michael Clarke - A man who did put some level of principle above the money when he decided to spend time with family and go fishing with an aging father over the IPL. Someone has some morals. Also in that category is England's Andrew Flintoff who showed his true sportsmanship (not for the first time) by saying the England Cricket Board has always done 'alright by him'.
This is money driven madness and the stupidity of it can be seen when you take a look at young Indian fast bowler Ishant Sharma - he has played in a handful of tests and one day internationals - sure the kid shows enormous promise BUT the 19-year old has been signed up for $1.01million!!!!!!!!! Stop and think about that folks - as a 19 year old he is going to make in 40 days of cricket what some entire villages in India make in a decade!! This is insanity and someone has to stand up and speak out about it. Wouldn't it be wonderful if somoene in the IPL showed they were only playing for the love of the game by donating half of their income to charity in the developed world??? Of course this is unlikely to happen, I'd like to see a program maybe where the relative cricket boards in each country take some of the players money and re-invest it into the game. So a new generation of Pontings, Tendulkars and Jayasuriyas can come through and endorse hamburgers and high calorie soft drinks for years to come.
it has. The actual auction has taken place and is full of such bizarre contradictions and extravagent spending that you would think that there is no poverty in India and that the streets are paved with gold.
Now before we begin with the analysis of this draft let's just take a moment to consider that the all conquering Australian team are supposedly touring Pakistan during the duration of the competition meaning they would have a limited influence on the tournament.
So let's start with Andrew Symonds - the $1.47million dollat man [insert cash register noises here]. Mr Symonds has been blessed with circumstances here. The big hitting awesome fielding Australian would be the perfect 20/20 cricketer. But with Australia going on tour no one would pay that amount of money from him right? Well his own incredible stupidity actually helped up his price. He claimed that he would not go to Pakistan even if the rest of his team went as it was too dangerous. So far so good. He then went on to say that it was his undrstanding that all international tours were on an invitational basis and that he would kindly decline the Cricket Australia offer to tour. He obviously hasn't read his Cricket Australia contract and my guess on the basis of those comments is that he isn't the smartest joker in the pack (and when we are talking Australian cricketers, that's not a very smart pack to begin with). His comments were lept upon those who also can't read with glee that he would be playing in India no matter what. So Hyderabad forked out $1.47 million dollars for his talents on the assumption that he would be playing for them no matter what only to find that in his Cricket Australia contract if he refused to go to Pakistan they could (would and should) stop him playing for the mercenary money in India.
If Symonds is a little dim then perhaps he gets some of it from his captain Ricky Ponting. In a press conference after the auction Ricky P claimed he was 'dissappointed' with getting 'only $400,000 ' in the auction. He wondere why that was - maybe his poor form around the time of the auction but he wondered aloud that maybe it was the Harbhajan Singh incident at the Sydney test though he noted his international teamate at the centre of it was now Mr $1.47million. Punter did some more pontificating on the reasons - he sais he's always been good at endorsements (A fact that I cannot deny as I have seen him whore hiimself out for ads for vitamins, deodurants, cars, phones, banks, fried chicken and oils - you know what I mean). BUT RICKY, baby, DO YOU HONESTLY THINK ANYONE IS GOING TO FEEL SORRY FOR YOU BECAUSE YOU ARE ONLY GETTING $400,000 to play 40 days of cricket????? I tell you cricketers are going to get a bad name.
That is with the exception of Michael Clarke - A man who did put some level of principle above the money when he decided to spend time with family and go fishing with an aging father over the IPL. Someone has some morals. Also in that category is England's Andrew Flintoff who showed his true sportsmanship (not for the first time) by saying the England Cricket Board has always done 'alright by him'.
This is money driven madness and the stupidity of it can be seen when you take a look at young Indian fast bowler Ishant Sharma - he has played in a handful of tests and one day internationals - sure the kid shows enormous promise BUT the 19-year old has been signed up for $1.01million!!!!!!!!! Stop and think about that folks - as a 19 year old he is going to make in 40 days of cricket what some entire villages in India make in a decade!! This is insanity and someone has to stand up and speak out about it. Wouldn't it be wonderful if somoene in the IPL showed they were only playing for the love of the game by donating half of their income to charity in the developed world??? Of course this is unlikely to happen, I'd like to see a program maybe where the relative cricket boards in each country take some of the players money and re-invest it into the game. So a new generation of Pontings, Tendulkars and Jayasuriyas can come through and endorse hamburgers and high calorie soft drinks for years to come.
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