THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Sanju Samson has become the most expensive player in the Kerala Cricket League (KCL) after Kochi Blue Tigers bought the India batter for Rs 26.8 lakh in the season two auction held in Thiruvananthapuram on Saturday. The auction saw a total of 91 players selected from a pool of 168. Vishnu Vinod and Jalaj Saxena also crossed the Rs 10 lakh mark. Vishnu was picked up by Aries Kollam Sailors for Rs 12.8 lakh while Jalaj went to Alleppey Ripples for Rs 12.4 lakh.
All six teams came close to exhausting their Rs 50 lakh purse. Kochi used the entire amount. Kollam spent Rs 49.8 lakh, Calicut Globstars Rs 49.8 lakh, Thrissur Titans Rs 49.65 lakh, Trivandrum Royals Rs 49.4 lakh and Alleppey Rs 49.35 lakh. Each team filled their squad with the maximum 20 players.
Sanju attracted intense bidding, with Trivandrum and Thrissur also throwing in their lot. Last season’s top-priced player M S Akhil was bought by Kollam Sailors for Rs 8.4 lakh after a close contest. Basil Thampi was the first player to be auctioned and the pacer was picked up by Trivandrum for the same amount.
Sanju, who did not feature in the league’s inaugural edition last year, was listed in the 39-player ‘category A’ pool. For the marquee player, the league offers a chance to get back into rhythm following the injury-hit IPL 2025 season where he played just nine matches. The right-handed batter scored 285 runs at a strike rate of 140.39, managing only one fifty as Rajasthan Royals ended their campaign in ninth place.
Players like Abdul Basith (Rs 6.4 lakh), Anand Krishnan (Rs 7 lakh), Vinod Kumar (Rs 6.2 lakh), and M Ajnas (Rs 6.4 lakh) also drew high bids. In the ‘C’ category, where the base price was Rs 75,000, V Ajith fetched the highest bid of Rs 3.95 lakh. He was picked by Trivandrum. Others who secured over Rs 5 lakh include Sijomon Joseph, Basil N P, Sachin Suresh and Nikhil M. The auction also saw several new faces and local talents being picked, especially from Pool C.
The auction began at 10 am in the presence of General Education Minister V Sivankutty and was moderated by Charu Sharma. It concluded by 5 pm.
Season 2 of KCL will begin on August 21 with all the games being played at the Greenfield International Stadium in Thiruvananthapuram. Two matches will be held each day, at 2.30pm and 6.45pm. All matches will be broadcast live on Star Sports 3 and Asianet Plus. Entry is free, but online coupons will be used for crowd management.
KCL organisers are planning to collaborate with the tourism department. There are also plans to link the tournament with Onam celebrations and run social awareness campaigns.
Animated content based in collaboration with Toonz Media on the league’s mascot and a new fan engagement app are also in development. Last season, KCL reportedly created over 700 direct and 2,500 indirect jobs. This year, Kudumbashree units will run food courts inside the stadium. The first season had an estimated financial impact of Rs 30 crore, benefiting local businesses such as hotels, taxis, caterers and media firms.