IPL auction records tumble as Pant and Iyer snapped up

Riyadh, Saudi Arabia: Indian wicketkeeper Rishabh Pant became the most expensive player in Indian Premier League history Sunday when he sold for a rec...

Riyadh, Saudi Arabia: Indian wicketkeeper Rishabh Pant became the most expensive player in Indian Premier League history Sunday when he sold for a record $3.2 million, as teams splashed out on world-class cricketers for the lucrative Twenty20 tournament.

A total of 577 players are up for grabs at the two-day auction in Jeddah, with Pant, England veteran James Anderson and New Zealand all-rounder Rachin Ravindra among the top names.

The 2023 record of 247.5 million rupees Kolkata paid to Australian Mitchell Starc was first breached by Punjab Kings, who the IPL said snapped up Shreyas Iyer for a "handsome" 267.5 million rupees ($3.17 million).

Iyer, 29, captained Kolkata Knight Riders to their third IPL crown this year.

But that record rapidly tumbled.