By IANS
Sydney : A day before the high-profile cricketers’ auction for the Indian Premier League (IPL), Australia wicketkeeper Brad Haddin and left-arm fast bowler Mitchell Johnson have opted out of the extravaganza.
Neil Maxwell, IPL’s Australian players’ agent, has confirmed that till now 14 to 15 players have signed for the Twenty20 tournament. He, however, said that both Haddin and Johnson have decided to concentrate on cementing their places in the national team.
“Two guys have decided not to go – Haddin and Johnson – as they’re going to focus on their international careers. I’m just waiting on one other, but apart from that everyone else is right,” Maxwell told Daily Telegraph.
For the first time in the game’s history, over 80 cricketers will be up for sale at an auction in Mumbai Wednesday, with eight franchise owners bidding for them.
Maxwell said that retiring wicketkeeper Adam Gilchrist is the heading the list of prized Australian cricketers who are up for auction.
“Gilchrist is very well-placed. I think he will earn considerable money. I don’t think it will be quite a million, maybe in Australian dollars he will go close,” he said.
“The top players, for six weeks’ work, could be earning, dare I say it, $70,000 to $80,000 a week … quite comfortably I’d suggest for some of those top ones. It’s in the realms of the English Premier League (football), which for a long time players have wanted to aspire to.”