England's Ben Stokes fetched a staggering $2.17 million in the Indian Premier League's (IPL) player auction on Monday, with the Rising Pune Supergiants splashing out in a frenzied bidding war to land the explosive all-rounder. The Pune franchise fought off Mumbai, Bangalore, Delhi and Hyderabad to get the 25-year-old, paying 145 million Indian rupees despite his limited availability for the Twenty20 competition. With England hosting South Africa in a one-day series in May, Stokes is set to miss the final phase of the April 5-May 21 tournament, yet the bidding surged from his base price of 20 million rupees. Pune owner Sanjiv Goenka told reporters that Stokes, now the most expensive overseas player in IPL history, would bring something new to the team for the 10th edition of the tournament. "He's a complete player and he completes our squad. We've been lacking this one genre of player," he said. "We knew he was going to be there for the first 14 games ... We pretty much knew we were not going to get him for below this price." Tymal Mills, Stokes' England Twenty20 teammate, was snapped up for 120 million rupees by Royal Challengers Bangalore, who will look to benefit from the left-arm fast bowler's ability to combine great pace with economy. All-rounder Chris Woakes was the third England player to get a hefty payday, going to Kolkata Knight Riders for 42 million rupees. Other big-earners included New Zealand fast bowler Trent Boult and South Africa paceman Kagiso Rabada, who both went for 50 million rupees to Kolkata Knight Riders and Delhi Daredevils respectively. England's limited-overs captain Eoin Morgan went to Kings XI Punjab for a relatively modest 20 million rupees. Delhi Daredevils bought Australian paceman Pat Cummins for 45 million rupees, while compatriot Mitchell Johnson, who quit international cricket in 2015, returned to his former team Mumbai Indians for 20 million. Owners mostly gave the cold shoulder to slow bowlers, with South African leg-spinner Imran Tahir, who tops both the one-day and Twenty20 bowling rankings, unsold. Mohammad Nabi became the first Afghanistan player to be bought in the IPL with Sunrisers Hyderabad offering three million rupee for the all-rounder. They also bought Afghan leg-spinner Rashid Khan for 40 million rupees. Pakistan Super League final stays in Lahore: Sethi The Pakistan Super League final will be played in the city of Lahore next month despite a recent attack there, which killed at least 13 people. "PSL management and franchisees resolve to hold final in Lahore," PSL chairman Najam Sethi said in a tweet on Monday. West Indies player Darren Sammy, who is leading Peshawar Zalmi and England's Kevin Pietersen, representing Quetta Gladiators have reportedly said they will decide about their participation in the final at Lahore once their teams qualify for it. A players' group said there was still a considerable threat. "The advice from our security consultants remains that there is heightened security risk for foreign players playing in Pakistan, including Lahore," said Tony Irish, Chairman of the Federation of International Cricketers' Association FICA. "It is up to each player to make a decision on whether or not he wishes to play in the PSL final in Lahore." Sethi met owners of all the five franchises in the United Arab Emirates during which it was unanimously decided to take the March 5 final to Lahore. "All the team owners took time to reinforce their solidarity and conviction with the decision of taking the final of the PSL back to its rightful home, the Gaddafi Cricket Stadium, Lahore," the Pakistan Cricket Board said in a statement. Last week doubts were raised over the Lahore final when a bomber targeted police escorting a rally by pharmacists, killed 13 people. However, PSL organizers have the backing of the Pakistan government in providing tight security for the finalists. Pakistan has not hosted any major Test playing nation for the last seven years since terrorists attacked a Sri Lanka team bus — also in Lahore — in 2009. Sethi thanked the five franchises — Islamabad United, Peshawar Zalmi, Karachi Kings, Lahore Qalandars and Quetta Gladiators — for agreeing to play the final in Lahore. "It has been heart-warming to see the dedication of all the owners ... this final will be the first step in opening the gates to international teams starting to make the journey again," Sethi said in a statement. "We are all committed to this mission and wish to have a thoroughly entertaining final where it should happen — in Lahore." Sethi had already said that all the five franchises could include new players from Wednesday's fresh draft in case their present foreign players were reluctant to travel to Lahore due to security concerns. — Agencies
