Our stars set to clean up in IPL auction

THE bidding will start at just under $ 400,000 for nine Australian stars including exiled batsman Glenn Maxwell who were listed at the maximum reserve price for this year’s Indian Premier League Auction.

Australian captain Steve Smith and opener David Warner were already retained by their franchises and are set to make more than $ 2 million for the beefed- up version of the Twenty20 competition in April.

Backed by a record $ 3.2 billion TV deal, the IPL salary cap has increased to $ 16 million per team and the best Aussie players are set to cash in with deals which could each exceed $ 1 million.

That includes injured slugger Chris Lynn, former Test quick Mitchell Johnson, pace spearheads Mitch Starc and Josh Hazlewood, and veteran Cameron White has been recalled to the Australian one- day squad, who are all listed as having the maximum reserve price.

They are among 1122 players who have nominated for the auction, although that number will be culled when the eight franchises submit their lists of preferred players before the two- day auction on January 27 and 28.

Another nine Australians, including star spinner Nathan Lyon, are on the next rung down, with reserve prices for their services set at just under $ 300,000.

A near full compliment of Australia’s best players are entering the auction, minus just injured players and Test allrounder Mitch Marsh who has opted to spend his winter playing county cricket for Surrey ahead of the 2019 Ashes and World Cup in the UK.

Australia’s only cricket commitments through winter are a five- game one- day series in England, and then Tests against Pakistan in the UAE in August, giving them ample time to take advantage of the huge dollars on offer in the IPL.