The inaugural champions Rajasthan Royals were not able to qualify for the playoff stages in the previous season and they will look to turn the tables in the coming season.

The Royals will be lead by a young player in Sanju Samson and it will be interesting to note how the youngster will grab his opportunity.

A total of 292 players went under the hammer on Thursday at Chennai. Out of them, 57 players were sold of which 22 were foreign players whereas 29 were uncapped players. A total of INR 145.3 crores were spent in the auction.

Meanwhile, Rajasthan Royals broke the bank for Chris Morris as they roped in the South African for a whopping amount of INR 16.25 crores, making him the most expensive buy in the history of the IPL auction.

All-rounder Shivam Dube, who was released by Royal Challengers Bangalore, was also picked by Rajasthan Royals for INR 4.4 crores. Saurashtra young bowler Chetan Sakariya was bagged by Rajasthan Royals for INR 1.2 crores.

Bangladesh’s talisman fast bowler Mustafizur Rahman has been roped in for INR 1 crore. Rahman has the experience under his belt and he is a good addition to the Royals’ bowling battery. England’s batsman Liam Livingstone, who showed good form in the Big Bash League as he scored 426 runs, was bought for INR 75 lakh.

Akash Singh, KC Cariappa, and Kuldip Yadav were brought for INR 20 lakh each by Rajasthan Royals.

Players retained: Sanju Samson, Ben Stokes, Jofra Archer, Jos Buttler, Riyan Parag, Shreyas Gopal, Rahul Tewatia, Mahipal Lomror, Kartik Tyagi, Andrew Tye, Jaydev Unadkat, Mayank Markande, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Anuj Rawat, David Miller, Manan Vohra, Robin Uthappa.

Players bought: Chris Morris (16.25 crores), Shivam Dube (4.4 crores), Chetan Sakariya (1.2 crores), Mustafizur Rahman (1 crore), Liam Livingstone (75 lakh), Akash Singh (20 lakh), KC Cariappa (20 lakh), Kuldip Yadav (20 lakh)