Australian all-rounder Cameron Green has made history, becoming the most expensive overseas player in the Indian Premier League (IPL) after Kolkata Knight Riders secured his services for the 2026 season at Tuesday’s auction.
The 26-year-old was snapped up for a staggering 252 million Indian rupees ($2.77 million) following an intense bidding war with Chennai Super Kings.
Kolkata, who have won the IPL on three occasions, ultimately prevailed despite Green initially being registered as a batter due to an administrative error that he blamed on his manager.
This record-breaking sum places Green as the third most expensive player in IPL history overall, behind Indian internationals Rishabh Pant (270 million rupees) and Shreyas Iyer (267.5 million rupees).
Green, who previously featured for Mumbai Indians and Royal Challengers Bengaluru, missed the 2025 season while recovering from back surgery.
He is set to feature in the third Ashes Test against England after being named in Australia’s playing XI, with the Adelaide match due to commence on Wednesday.
Green has represented Australia in all three formats after making his international debut back in December 2020 in a Test match against India.
He was part of the team that won the World Test Championship in 2023, and was also in the Australia squad that won the one-day World Cup later that same year.
Australia made the World Test Championship final again this year but were beaten by South Africa at Lord’s, with Green struggling for runs while batting in an unfamiliar No 3 position.
He has since returned to the middle order and is currently playing in his second Ashes campaign after also featuring in the drawn series in England in 2023.
Australia are 2-0 up in this year’s Ashes following wins in Perth and Brisbane, and they can seal a series victory if they win in Adelaide this week.
