Cameron Green has become the most expensive Australian cricketer in Indian Premier League auction history.
The 23-year-old allrounder was sold to the Mumbai Indians for a staggering $3.15 million, surpassing the figure payed by the Kolkata Knight Riders for Pat Cummins in 2020.
"I'm pinching myself that this has all happened," Green said from Melbourne where he's preparing for the Boxing Day Test against South Africa.
"It's such a weird feeling watching an auction for yourself. I can't believe how nervous I was and I was shaking like anything when the final call was confirmed.
"I've always been a huge fan of the IPL and it's going to be so cool to be a part of it.
"The Mumbai Indians are one of the powerhouses of the competition so I feel very humbled to be joining them.
"I can't wait to get there next year."
Royal Challengers Bangalore and Mumbai led the early exchanges the bidding war for Green, before the Delhi Capitals entered the fray.
Mumbai bought another West Australian in Perth Scorchers star Jhye Richardson for his base price of $270,000. The pair will be joined at Mumbai by compatriots Tim David and Jason Behrendorff, both of whom were already retained by the franchise for the 2023 season.
England allrounder Sam Curran meantime became the most expensive player in the history of the IPL auction after the Punjab Kings paid almost $3.6m for his services.
The 24-year-old's record-breaking deal made him the hottest property during a six-way bidding war in Kerala, with Test captain Ben Stokes (Chennai Super Kings) and Harry Brook (Sunrisers Hyderabad) close behind as they both scored deals well in excess of $1.8m.
Curran's stock has never been higher after he starred in England's T20 World Cup triumph in Australia last month, picking up the player of the tournament and player of the final double, and his was the name on everybody's lips as bidding got under way in Kerala.
"I'm very happy to have him on board, he has a lot of skills with both bat and ball. We had two or three allrounders in mind, Sam might be lucky he came up first!", former England and current Punjab coach Trevor Bayliss said.
It marks a remarkable shift in fortunes for Curran, who was released by his former franchise Chennai early in 2021 and was not fit enough to take part in the subsequent mega auction.
Stokes benefited from the same interest in allrounders, while his eye-catching revolution as captain of England's Test side will not have gone unnoticed given the ultra-aggressive style he advocated.
Brook's rise has a rapid one since making his Test debut at the end of the summer, forcing his way into the T20 side in time to lift the silverware in Melbourne and hitting three centuries in three Tests as he took centre stage in Pakistan.
With PA.