Former Zimbabwe cricket all-rounder Sean Ervine will be the only local player to feature in the inaugural Bangladesh Premier League after he was picked by the Duronto Rajshanti for $25 000 at the tourney’s player auction in Dhaka on Thursday.
Ervine, who plays for Hampshire in the English County Championships, is currently in the country after joining Matabeleland Tuskers for the second half of the season.
At Duronto Rajshanti, Ervine will be reunited with former Hampshire teammates Imran Tahir who was bought for ($50 000) and Pakistani Abdul Razzaq ($100 000).
Other Zimbabwean players whose names featured during the auction include national team skipper Brendan Taylor, Hamilton Masakadza, Elton Chigumbura and Stuart Matsikenyeri.
Masakadza and Matsikenyeri were in the Grade C tier of the auction, which meant that they had a base value of $15 000, but they could not get any suitors.
However, it was Taylor who seemed to be the favourite to attract interest from the Bangladesh franchises as he was among the 17 foreign stars who were available on auction at a base value of $$100 000.
Taylor, who recently featured for the Wellington Firebirds in New Zealand’s own Twenty20 (T20) competition, the HRV Cup, was in the same category with other international stars like Sri Lankan legend Muttiah Muralitharan and paceman Chaminda Vaas, South Africa’s Herschelle Gibbs and New Zealand’s Scott Styris.
There were no offers for Taylor who in the end lost the chance to bag, at least, $100 000 for a two-week adventure playing T20 cricket in Bangladesh.
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Earlier reports had indicated Zimbabwe all-rounder, Chigumbura, had been signed by Duronto Rajshai for $50 000.
However, according to a source attending the auction in Dhaka, there was a dispute about the bid for the former Zimbabwe skipper as the franchises representatives claimed they had not bid for him.
“One of the franchise officials raised his finger to scratch his itching ear and the auctioneer thought he was bidding for Chigumbura.
“But the bid was later cancelled after he explained what was happening,” said the source.
Meanwhile, Zimbabwe have the highest number of international players featuring in the preliminary list of players for the 2012 Indian Premier League auction.
Zimbabwe has 25 players on the list of 183 that have been listed for the February 4 auction to be held in Bangalore.
Taylor is in the highest ranked of the Zimbabwean contingent as his name features on the fourth-tier category with a base value of $100 000 along with 18 other hopefuls.
Wicketkeeper batsman Tatenda Taibu, Chigumbura, Masakadza, Matsikenyeri, Vusi Sibanda, Chris Mpofu, Chamu Chibhabha, Ed Rainsford, Charles Coventry, Keith Dabengwa, Craig Ervine, Forster Mutizwa and Kyle Jarvis all feature on the fifth tier with a base value of $50 000.
Middle-order batsman Malcolm Waller, Regis Chakabva, Keegan Meth, Tymicen Maruma, Shingirai Masakadza, Brian Vitori, Tino Mawoyo, Natsai Mushangwe, Njabulo Ncube, Richard Muzhange and Tendai Chatara feature in the sixth tier with a base value of $20 000.
Veteran spinner Ray Price was the only Zimbabwean player that featured in last year’s edition where he played for the Mumbai Indians.
