Liam Livingstone, an England all-rounder, to join Punjab Kings for Rs 11.50 crore

Liam Livingstone, a former Rajasthan Royals all-rounder, was selected by Punjab Kings on Day 2 of the upcoming Indian Premier League (IPL) 2022 mega auction on Sunday (February 13). Livingstone was the first all-rounder in Set 2 of the all-rounders, and he received offers to play for the Punjab Kings and Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR).

Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) came in late, but Punjab Kings were able to secure Livingstone for Rs 11.50 crore in the end. After Ben Stokes' Rs 14.5 crore to Rising Pune Supergiants (2017), Stokes' Rs 12.5 crore to Rajasthan Royals (2018), and Tymal Mills' Rs 12 crore to RCB, Livingstone is now the fourth highest paid English cricketer (2017).

Livingstone should be a significant part of England's plans moving into the World Cup in October, owing to his good record (average 30.38, strike rate 138.14) in two Big Bash seasons for Perth.

Meanwhile, India's Cheteshwar Pujara and England's Eoin Morgan are in action. In the first round of bidding, Australia captain Aaron Finch went unsold. Teams began bidding for South African batter Aiden Markram on Day 2 of the mega auction.

Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) paid Rs 2.6 crore for the right-handed batter. Delhi Capitals have paid Rs 1.1 crore for India batter Mandeep Singh.

Ishan Kishan, Shreyas Iyer, and Deepak Chahar were among the top picks on Day 1 of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2022 mega auction. Mumbai Indians paid Rs 15.25 crore for Kishan, while Chennai Super Kings paid Rs 14 crore for Chahar.

Iyer was bought for Rs 12.25 crore by Kolkata Knight Riders, while Avesh Khan was bought for Rs 10 crore by Lucknow Super Giants, making him the most expensive uncapped player.