IPL Auction 2020: Top 5 'steal' deals from the auction featuring Jimmy Neesham

The Indian Premier League (IPL) Auction 2020 was completed on Thursday, December 19 in Kolkata. While franchises spent on some players more than they deserve, there are some players who have been signed on for amounts that are considered by many cricket fans and pundits as way less than they deserve. The auction witnessed some of the big names go at very low prices.

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IPL Auction 2020: Top 5 steal deals

1. Chris Lynn: ₹2 crore - Mumbai Indians

Lynn had created a lot of buzz ahead of the auction and was expected to rake in big bucks but the right-hander didn't get bids from any franchise except Mumbai Indians. The Australian dasher was in red-hot form in the recently concluded Abu Dhabi T10 as he scored 371 runs in just 9 matches.

2. James Neesham: ₹50 lakhs - Kings XI Punjab

New Zealand all-rounder James Neesham was acquired by the Kings XI Punjab in the IPL Auction 2020. KXIP acquired Neesham for a meagre ₹50 lakhs. He has established himself as a dependable batting all-rounder in the past year and his presence was vital in New Zealand's World Cup campaign too. His base price was ₹50 lakhs and the Kings XI enthusiastically placed their bid in no time to rope in the Kiwi all-rounder. It could be considered surprising that no other team bid for Neesham.

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3. Andrew Tye: ₹1 crore - Rajasthan Royals

Tye, who won the Purple Cap in the IPL 2018 with wickets for Kings XI Punjab, went unsold twice. He was finally picked by Rajasthan Royals for ₹1 crore which was also his base price. Tye is famous for his knuckleball as well as his slower ones and is exceptional at the death. This was a bargain buy for Royals and they would be really happy with it. Tye has bagged 39 wickets from 26 matches in IPL.

4. Tom Banton: ₹1 crore - Kolkata Knight Riders

Banton was one player that CSK and MI were reportedly targetting before the auction. He made quite a name for himself with his explosive batting in recent times. He made his T20 debut for Somerset in July 2017. The right-handed opening batsman played 17 T20 matches for his county in which he scored 591 runs at an impressive average of 39.40. The wicketkeeper-batsman smashed one century and four half-centuries in his short T20 career at a strike rate of 154.30. He was expected to go big at the auction but he just got one bid from KKR and was sold to them at his base price ₹1 crore.

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5. David Miller: ₹75 lakhs - Rajasthan Royals

The South African batsman, who has been playing in the IPL since 2012, was released earlier this year by Kings XI Punjab. He has scored 1850 runs in 79 matches at a decent average of 34.25. However, his form slumped in the past two seasons. But looking at his ability to explode from ball one, it came as a shocker that he was sold for just ₹75 lakhs to Rajasthan Royals. 

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