Spending smart

          

Maxwell, Kane Richardson ($700,000, Pune Warriors), Chris Morris ($625,000, Chennai Super Kings) and Sachithra Senanayake (also $625,000, Kolkata Knight Riders) fetched jaw-dropping sums. Not many outside their countries had heard about the talent and skills of these players, but IPL franchises were willing to gamble on them.Take the case of Richardson. The South Australian, recently turned 22, was the third-most expensive player at the 2013 auction, bought by Pune Warriors India. The former South Africa fast bowler Allan Donald, who is the Warrriors' bowling coach, saw Richardson play in the Ryobi Cup and was hooked. "The thing that excited me about Kane was his death-bowling skills," Donald said. "He is completely left-field, he brings something completely new, and not a lot of people know about him.The four players above were on the radar of many franchises, who did active research on them, and other players, over 2012. Local coaches in various countries acted as scouts, relaying information on these and lesser-known players, and some of the franchises' own coaches travelled or kept a keen ear to the ground on the progress and performances of these cricketers.Those first player contracts were worth three years, and most franchises learned from their mistakes over that period. In 2009, Super Kings picked up a young George Bailey at his base price. He was playing for Tasmania and had yet to make his international debut, but former India selector VB Chandrasekhar, who was then with Super Kings, was tempted to try Bailey out, having watched his penchant for hitting sixes.Delhi Daredevils team director TA Sekar and his assistant coach Aashish Kapoor, the former India offspinner, made repeat trips to Australia to scout for local talent, where they spotted Maxwell in 2012. This is part of a trend where franchises have moved from chasing big names to looking for untapped but promising young talent.