During the intense four-day contest of the first Test match in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy (BGT) between India and Australia in Perth, the IPL mega auction, taking place thousands of miles away in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, had a significant presence at Optus Stadium. Despite the BGT being a high-profile cricket rivalry, the IPL’s influence was so profound that players, broadcasters, and Australian media alike found it hard not to include it in their discussions. In fact, the IPL, one of the largest and most popular T20 leagues, often seemed to overshadow the ongoing BGT.
One of the effects of the IPL on the India vs Australia rivalry has been a reduction in the intensity that was once so prevalent, particularly during the 2017 series. The reason? The IPL brings together international players as teammates for two months, forging camaraderie. This newfound friendship between opponents was visible during the BGT; for instance, Mitchell Marsh and Rishabh Pant, who were teammates at Delhi Capitals, shared a friendly fist bump when Australia had India on the ropes on Day 1. Similarly, Mitchell Starc and Harshit Rana, both former Kolkata Knight Riders players, engaged in light-hearted banter.
The IPL auction captivated both Indian and Australian players from the very first day of the Test match. When Pant was batting, the stump mic picked up an IPL-related comment from Nathan Lyon. He teased Pant, asking, “Where are we going in the auction?” to which Pant responded, “No idea,” shutting down the jibe immediately. On Day 3, as Pant charged at Marsh off the first ball he faced and missed, Virat Kohli, at the non-striker’s end, quipped, “He doesn’t need to go big, he is going big anyway in the auction.” Kohli’s prediction was accurate, as hours later, Pant became the costliest player in IPL history, being bought for ₹27 crore by Lucknow Super Giants.
The IPL auction had a similar impact on the Australians. Before the Test match, Australian captain Pat Cummins remarked that while he expected several teammates to fetch large sums, the auction wouldn’t be a “distraction” for the players. Even the broadcasters were swept up in the excitement. After the first innings, one presenter commented on live TV, “Hazlewood just secured a big paycheque; so did Pant.” Hazlewood, after his impressive 4/29, had rejoined his former team, Royal Challengers Bangalore.
The IPL auction’s influence extended beyond the players and broadcasters. Legendary cricketer Ricky Ponting had to leave his broadcasting role with Channel 7, while Australia’s assistant coach, Daniel Vettori, had to step away from his coaching duties to make it to Jeddah in time for the mega auction. Although Ponting expressed his frustrations with the scheduling, he returned satisfied after helping assemble a strong squad for Punjab Kings. Vettori, too, was pleased with his team, as Sunrisers Hyderabad invested ₹44.80 crore to purchase 20 players at the auction.
The simultaneous occurrence of the IPL mega auction and the BGT highlighted the vast appeal of both events, with the IPL continuing to capture the attention of players and fans alike, even during the heated Test series.
