Twenty-one year-old county all-rounder James Coles secured a record-breaking bid of £390,000 from London Spirit in the Men's Hundred auction today, making him a higher earner in the competition than Joe Root and Rashid Khan.
Coles fetches higher price than Root and Rashid
A fierce bidding war ensued after Coles' name was called during the 'hero' round of the inaugural men's Hundred auction, between Birmingham Phoenix and Manchester Super Giants. Sunrisers Leeds and Trent Rockets overtook them, however, pushing his price tag over the quarter of a million mark. Just as it looked like Sunrisers would close the deal, London Spirit swooped in and sent the price soaring to £390,000.
That price was enough for Spirit to secure the services of Coles, and make him the most expensive player bought during the day to that point. Earlier in the day, Welsh Fire paid £300,000 for wicketkeeper-batter Jordan Cox, after having already paid £240,000 for Joe Root. Adil Rashid went to Southern Brave for £250,000.
While Coles is currently the player who went for the most expensive price tag in the auction, he isn't quite the highest-paid player in the competition. Jofra Archer was one of Southern Brave's pre-signings, costing them £400,000, while Harry Brook will be paid £465,000 by Sunrisers Leeds, having also been picked up in the pre-signings phase. However, Rashid Khan – who has taken the most wickets in T20 history – will be paid less than half of Coles' salary, having been pre-signed by MI London for £175,000.
Who is James Coles?
Coles has been rapidly increasing in profile over the last year. He made an impact for Sunrisers Eastern Cape in his maiden SA20 season, and was integral with both bat and ball to propel them to the final. A left-arm spinner who bats in the middle-order, it was thought before the auction that Coles would be one of the most sought-after players.
He made his first-class debut for Sussex as a 16-year-old, and most recently starred for England Lions in their white-ball series against Pakistan Shaheens. He was the leading wicket-taker in the T20I leg of that series, taking eight wickets at an average of 8.25. He took five wickets for Southern Brave in last year's competition, and scored 129 runs at a strike rate of 136.26.
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