NEW DELHI: He may have been accused of indiscipline and tagged a disrupter, but experienced midfielder Gurbaj Singh showed that his skills still commanded a premium, becoming the most expensive player in the closed bid for the 2017 Hockey India League here on Wednesday.
Out of the national team for more than a year, constantly overlooked for selection despite impressive performances on the domestic circuit and having led India at the SAF Games, Gurbaj was the first to go under the hammer and was picked up by Ranchi Rays for a whopping $99,000 after starting with a base price of $17,500.
The talented right-winger had been excluded from the open auctions last year while being suspended for nine months in August on charges of creating disharmony within the team.
Since his omission, India has tried several players in his position, but despite recent successes, the management has found it difficult to find a suitable replacement.
Gurbaj, in fact, was on Ranchi coach Harendra Singh’s radar as a late replacement in 2016 as well and has managed to keep his fitness at par with the national campers.
Among the foreign players, German forward and one of the nominees for FIH's Young Player-of-the-Year award Christopher Ruhr was the costliest buy, also picked up by Rays for $75,000.
Other notable bids were for Tom Craig (Kalinga Lancers) and Dutchmen Robert van der Horst (Jaypee Punjab Warriors) and Seve van Ass (Uttar Pradesh Wizards).
While all teams had a $725,000 cap, Ranchi and Punjab were able to bid higher, having retained most of their squad for less.
In fact, most teams had only one or two vacancies and preferred to put faith in young Indian players. Eighteen-year-old defender Hardik Singh went to Punjab for $39,000 with Shamsher Singh, Ajay Yadav and India's U-17 Asia Cup-winning captain Nilam Sanjeep Xess were the other important picks.
“The professionalism of the league is commendable and all credit must go to the franchises, who have conducted their work in an inspiring manner.
“The teams have consistently looked to bid way higher than the base prices, which shows how valuable and talented each of the players are,” HIL chairman Narinder Batra said.
Batra, however, will soon relinquish the post as he has been elected FIH president.
