Hales, Malinga fetch big money in CPL drafts

England opener Alex Hales and veteran Sri Lankan pacer Lasith Malinga have emerged as the big winners in the CPL drafts. The pair along with Sri Lankan pace sensation Isuru Udana earned USD 160,000 in the first round of the drafts. Hales was bought by Barbados Tridents, with Malinga and Udana going to St Lucia Stars and St Kitts and Nevis Patriots respectively.

Some of the biggest names in West Indian cricket like Andre Russell and Dwayne Bravo were retained by their respective franchises –  Jamaica Tallawahs and Trinbago Knight Riders. Pakistan leg-spinner Shadab Khan was picked up by Guyana Amazon Warriors to conclude the first round of the draft. The Warriors also picked up wicketkeeper-batsman Nicholas Pooran as their marquee player.

Chris Gayle will continue to play for his home franchise, the Jamaica Tallawahs. Kieron Pollard was the big move in the drafts, moving from St Lucia stars, a franchise he captained in 2018 to the Trinbago Knight Riders. West Indies captain Jason Holder was picked up by the Barbados Tridents as their marquee player.

Other big names who were either retained or picked up by the franchises during the draft were Sunil Narine (Trinbago Knight Riders), James Neesham (Trinbago Knight Riders), Colin Munro (Trinbago Knight Riders), Fawad Ahmed (St Lucia Stars), Sandeep Lamichhane (Barbados Tridents), Wahab Riaz (Barbados Tridents), Mohammad Hasnain (Trinbago Knight Riders), Niroshan Dickwella (St Lucia Stars) and Sherfane Rutherford (Guyana Amazon Warriors).

USA internationals Saurabh Netravalkar (Guyana Amazon Warriors), Xavier Marshall (Jamaica Tallawahs), Aaron Jones (St Kitts and Nevis Patriots) and Hayden Walsh Jr (Barbados Tridents) were also picked up in the drafts.