Babar Azam, Cricket Legends Light Up Star-Studded ILT20 Auction

(MENAFN- Khaleej Times) As the Who's Who of world cricket arrived for the ILT20 Player Auction in Dubai on Thursday, everyone was anxious to see which franchises would engage in a bidding war for Babar Azam.

Pakistan's star batter made headlines by entering the auction for the UAE's IPL-style T20 league recently.

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But, contrary to expectations, there was no war over Babar as the 31-year-old was bought by Desert Vipers for his base price of $80,000.

It was an anti-climax to a day that started with legendary cricketers AB de Villiers, Allan Donald and Brett Lee making appearances as special guests alongside former Australian batter Usman Khawaja and ex-Pakistan captain Shoaib Malik.

Former Australian fast bowler Lee, who is also the brand ambassador of the ILT20, was all smiles as he helped Richard Madley, the auctioneer, draw the chits containing the names of the players from a box.

While Babar may not have launched a bidding war, his arrival is a great boost to the league.

The Pakistan batter, famous for his gorgeous cover drives, is expected to be the biggest crowd-puller this year.

Babar will be joined at defending champions Desert Vipers by his compatriots Naseem Shah and Fakhar Zaman, who were bought for the base price of $80,000 each.

Phil Oliver, CEO of the Desert Vipers, was happy with the players they got on Thursday.

“We're delighted with the picks that we've secured, including, from a continuity perspective, Fakhar Zaman and Naseem Shah back. It's very exciting for us to add them back to the squad from the team that won it last year,” Oliver said.

“And to add Babar in is very exciting. He's a very high-quality player who we know well. He knows the UAE well, and yeah, he's an excellent pick-up at the top of the order. We can't wait to welcome him to the Desert Vipers family.”

Meanwhile, England star Liam Livingstone was bought by Gulf Giants for $350,000.

Gulf Giants also bought Afghanistan's Rahmanullah Gurbaz for $310,000.

Faf du Plessis, the former South African captain, was bought by Dubai Capitals for $300,000.

Prolific Pakistan-born UAE batsman Muhammad Waseem was retained by MI Emirates for $210,000.

But it was Fazalhaq Farooqi of Afghanistan who became the most expensive player in ILT20 history. Farooqi was bought by MI Emirates on Thursday for $380,000.

It's going to be another exciting season of ILT20 this year, with top guns such as Finn Allen, David Miller and Heinrich Klaasen already joining the tournament as pre-auction signings.

While Allen will play for Abu Dhabi Knight Riders, Miller and Klaasen will defend the colours of Gulf Giants.

Marcus Stoinis (Dubai Capitals) will also return to the league after a three-year absence.

These stars will be joined by other big names such as Jason Holder, Sunil Narine (Abu Dhabi Knight Riders), Shimron Hetmyer (Desert Vipers), Rovman Powell and Mustafizur Rahman (Dubai Capitals), Nicholas Pooran, Rashid Khan, Romario Shepherd (MI Emirates) and Sikandar Raza (Sharjah Warriorz).

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