Older players take a backseat at the 5th IPL auction

The fizz went out of the IPL 5 auctions early in the morning. Former Indian captain Sourav Chandidas Ganguly walked out, evidently dejected, from ITC Gardenia - the auction destination in Bangalore - after Sahara announced that it was snapping ties with the BCCI and IPL. He was signed by Pune Warriors last year.

That looked a bad omen for the older players. As the auction progressed, it indeed became clear that those on the wrong side of the 30s or even in their early 30s weren't favourties with any of the teams.  VVS Laxman did not find a buyer. English batsman Owais Shah, 33, West Indian Marlon Samuels, 31, South Africans Mark Boucher, 35, and Justin Kemp, 34, did not make the cut either.  Those who did went at steal prices.

37-year old South African Herschelle Gibbs' hammer price was only $50,000 - Mumbai Indians bagged him. 39-year old Sri Lankan veteran Muttiah Muralitharan was pocketed by Royal Challengers Bangalore for $220,000.

"For his experience and ability, we got him at a price lower than what we expected to spend. Murali can be a good mentor to the younger players in the team," owner Siddharth Mallya said. 

One exception to the "old comes cheap" rule was 37-year old Aussie batsman Brad Hodge who was picked up by Rajasthan Royals for $475,000. The management of Rajasthan Royals felt that Hodge is still very fit, even though he is old. 

The very young, of course, bagged all the big money. Indian all rounder Ravindra Jadeja became the most expensive player of the auctions, fetching a price of more than $2 million. Chennai Super Kings and Deccan Chargers bid all their auction purse on him - the two teams could spend only upto $2 million in this auction. The Chennai team bagged Jadeja in a tie breaker where an undisclosed amount in Indian currency is submitted by both the teams.

Another big Indian bid was for bowler R Vinay Kumar, pocketed by the Royal Challengers Bangalore for $1 million.