CRICKET NEWS:EOIN MORGAN'S rapid rise in world cricket took another giant stride yesterday when he was signed up by Royal Challengers Bangalore for $220,000 (€154,00) at the Indian Premier League auction in Mumbai.
With a maximum of six weeks’ work, the 23-year-old Dubliner stands to pocket €25,000-a-week during his stay; the kind of money cricketers only dreamed about before the introduction of the Champions League-style Twenty20 competition just two years ago.
The left-hander joins a star-studded Bangalore line-up, with fellow England international Kevin Pietersen also on the books.
He will have his work cut out to break into a batting line-up that also boasts South Africa’s Jacques Kallis and Mark Boucher and the New Zealand duo of Ross Taylor and Jesse Ryder. Their Indian contingent includes Rahul Dravid and Virat Kohli.
Morgan was the only England player picked in yesterday’s auction, with Jonathan Trott and Graeme Swann amongst those who missed out on a lucrative deal.
Morgan was handed a base price of $200,000 (€140,000) in the auction, a figure matched in an opening bid from the Chennai Superkings. But Bangalore upped the stakes to $220,000, making Morgan the sixth-most expensive purchase in yesterday’s auction.
West Indian all-rounder Kieron Pollard (Mumbai) and New Zealand paceman Shane Bond (Kolkata) attracted maximum bids of $750,000 (€525,000), before a secret bidding process determined who they will play for this season.
Ireland’s latest batting sensation, Paul Stirling, showed just why he has attracted favourable comparisons to Morgan after his century helped the Under-19 side beat the USA by five wickets in their final group game at the World Cup in Queenstown, New Zealand yesterday.
