IPL 2018 Auction: Harbhajan Singh, Yuvraj Singh, Gautam Gambhir's base price revealed

New Delhi, Jan 11: They might not be retained by their respective franchises due to whatever reasons, but there are several veteran India cricketers who would be most sought-after during the auction of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2018.

The top players, who would be up for auction for the upcoming IPL season, are setting their sights towards the bidding process, scheduled for January 27 and 28.

Veteran players have also started revealing their base prices ahead of the auctioning. Harbhajan Singh, Yuvraj Singh, Gautam Gambhir are among those whose base prices for the upcoming bidding process are out. All three of these veteran Indian cricketers, who are not a part of the national side, have been big crowd pullers for their respective franchises.

All three of these senior India discards have set their base prices to Rs 2 crores for the IPL 2018 auction. The base price for auction of capped players could be at Rs 50 lakhs, Rs 1cr, Rs 1.50 cr, and Rs 2 crore. The players have the option of choosing on their own.

As per a Times of India report, veteran players Gautam Gambhir and Harbhajan Singh have set their base price at Rs 2 crore.

The others who're likely to figure in the top bracket are star batsman Yuvraj, West Indians Chris Gayle, Dwayne Bravo and Kieron Pollard, and Kiwi great Brendon McCullum.

India leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal is also likely to set his benchmark at Rs 2 crore.

Harbhajan, who was a part of the Mumbai Indians since its first season, has not been retained by the most successful franchise in the history of the IPL.

The third-highest wicket-taker in the IPL history with 127 scalps in 136 games, Harbhajan will be available in the auction.

"He played for MI for 10 years, which explains his immense value. He was their first captain to get them a title. He's captaincy material has gone for 6.95 runs per over, vastly experienced. He's amongst the top wicket-takers in the IPL and is a useful batsman down the order. This is the first time that he'll be available for the auction. Having him on the side, one gets not just match-winning ability, but someone who takes the team along with him. He can mentor and develop the youngsters in the team," a source was quoted by the media report as saying.

"I've had a great decade-long relationship with MI. I'll look to bowl well and win games for whichever team I play for in the IPL. Let's see what happens at the auction," said Harbhajan.

Meanwhile, India discard Yusuf Pathan, whose suspension due to doping would come to an end on January 14, has set his base price to Rs 75 lakh. BCCI has back-dated his suspension from August 15, 2017. He had "inadvertently ingested a prohibited substance" forcing the BCCI to hand him a suspension of six months.

Yusuf's younger brother and India discard Irfan Pathan, who went unsold in the last auction, has kept his base price at Rs 50 lakhs.