The HIL auction began amid much fanfare, marking a return after a seven-year gap. The event on its first day, which took place on Sunday, saw India captain Harmanpreet Singh emerge as the most expensive player, fetching 78 lakh. The first day included only men's players with some heavy bidding for members of the Indian national team.
The HIL is going to be a grand affair with eight men's teams and six women's teams. By Day 1-end, a few players were picked by different teams. The teams have an amount of Rs 4 crore in hand to spend for the squad, and all teams splashed a decent amount of money to get their targets.
Hockey India League Auction: Team Purses after Day 1 Auction
Soorma Hockey Club
Soorma Hockey Club went all guns blazing to the tune of 2.38 crores and thus ended with a balance of 1.62 crores. Their prominent signings include Harmanpreet Singh at 78 lakh in defense and Jeremy Hayward at 42 lakh. They also managed Dayaan Cassiem at 25 lakh as a forward and Vincent Vanasch at 23 lakh as goalkeeper.
Tamil Nadu Dragons
The Tamil Nadu Dragons have allocated 2.04 crore, while saving 1.96 crore. They have been majorly investing on the defenders Jip Janssen and Amit Rohidas. They spent 54 lakh on Jip Janssen and 48 lakh on Amit Rohidas. Forward Duco Telgenkamp was bought at 36 lakh, and David Harte joined as the goalkeeper at 32 lakh.
UP Rudras
The UP Rudras have spent 1.94 crore, retaining 2.06 crore. Their biggest signing was the midfielder Hardik Singh at 70 lakh. They also signed forward Lalit Kumar Upadhyaya for 28 lakh and defender Kane Russell for 30 lakh.
Delhi SG Pipers
Delhi SG Pipers have had a spend of 2.19 crore, with a balance of 1.81 crore. Midfielders Shamsher Singh and Raj Kumar Pal for nearly 40 lakh each. Defenders Rohit and Jarmanpreet Singh were picked at roughly the same price.
Shrachi Rarh Bengal Tigers
made huge investments with an outlay of 2.555 crore; now they were left with just 1.445 crore. Their biggest buy was forward Abhishek for a whopping 72 lakh. Jugraj Singh was their other major defence buy costing them 48 lakh.
Vedanta Kalinga Lancers
Vedanta Kalinga Lancers had spent hardly any money, investing a paltry 1.43 crore and balancing out at 2.57 crores. Their first forward was picked by Dilpreet Singh at 34 lakh, and Sanjay joined them as a defender for 38 lakh.
Hyderabad Toofans
Hyderabad Toofans allocated funds that would amount to 1.96 crore and kept aside another 2.04 crore for the second day. Gonzalo Peillat was their primary defensive acquisition at a cost of 68 lakh, while Nilakanta Sharma joined them as a mid-fielder for 34 lakh.
Team Gonasika
Team Gonasika splurged 2.39 crore total, but reserved 1.61 crore in case things get tighter than they need to be. They picked up Manpreet Singh as a midfielder and Araijeet Singh Hundal as a forward - each will cost them a touch above Rs 42 lakhs.
HIL Auction: Top Five Buys on Day 1
The first day of the auction already promises to be an exciting season ahead in the HIL's revival year. Indian players dominated the three top picks of the tournament so far. Most expensive overseas auctionee was Germany's Gonzalo Peillat.
| Player | Team | Price (in INR) |
|---|---|---|
| Harmanpreet Singh (IND) | Soorma Hockey Club | ₹78 lakh |
| Abhishek (IND) | Shrachi Rarh Bengal Tigers | ₹72 lakh |
| Hardik Singh (IND) | UP Rudras | ₹70 lakh |
| Gonzalo Peillat (GER) | Hyderabad Toofans | ₹68 lakh |
| Jip Janssen (NED) | Tamil Nadu Dragons | ₹54 lakh |
