The most shocking incident occurred during the Mega Auction of IPL 2022 today. While conducting the thrilling event, auctioneer Hugh Edmeades fainted on the podium midway and fell off the stage concerning everyone. The medical team was called in immediately and they took him to a medical facility. He is being taken care of currently.
Hugh Edmeades is over 60 years old and a legendary auctioneer. He has been a part of the IPL family for many years now and he has conducted over 2700 Auctions across the globe.
Watch Video: Hugh Edmeades Faints in the middle of IPL 2022 Mega Auction
Sri Lankan all-rounder Wanindu Hasaranga was the player going under the hammer when the incident took place. The Punjab Kings and Royal Challengers Bangalore were at a bidding war for the World No. 1 spinner and the last bid made was 10.75 Lakhs by Royal Challengers Bangalore.
It was right at this moment when the auctioneer fainted and fell off the podium. All the people present in the hall were in utter disbelief. Hugh Edmeades was rushed to medical support.
According to latest updates, Hugh Edmeades is fine and is still under medical assistance. It was a physical fall and not any internal problem. But the auctioneer is very shaken and might not continue with the auction any more. The organisers might have to look for a replacement in that case. It is indeed a very shocking incident and has never before happened in any IPL Auction.
Lunch was announced immediately and the auction will now resume at 3:45 PM and Charu Sharma will replace Hugh Edmeades as the auctioneer.
About 20 players have gone under the hammer so far and the teams have started to gain a shape finally. Although some teams like Sunrisers Hyderabad and Mumbai Indians are yet to buy any player, some others have been in 3rd gear. Kolkata Knight Riders for instance have bought Shreyas Iyer for 12.25 Crores, Pat Cummins for 7.25 Crores and Nitish Rana for 8 crores. They have been the most open spenders in the Auction so far and also have the costliest signing in Shreyas Iyer.
This is however only the first day of the Mega Auction. More than 1.5 days of auction is yet to be conducted and there will be many more shock signings.