Youth in focus, 14-year-old Ketan Kushwaha becomes the youngest pick at HIL mini-auction

Australian midfielder Liam Henderson became the costliest buy for the second season of the Hockey India League even as Ketan Kushwaha grabbed the limelight as the youngest player on any team’s roster as youngsters remained the biggest draw at the mini-auction on Wednesday.

The 22-year old Henderson, who made his senior international debut during the Pro League this year, was bought by Kalinga Lancers for ₹42 lakh after a bidding war with Delhi SG Pipers, making him one of the most expensive foreign players in HIL.

The 14-year-old Kushwaha, on the other hand, was snapped by Shrachi Bengal Tigers for ₹2.5 lakh, making him the youngest player in any professional league across the world. A product of Lucknow Sports Hostel, Kushwaha, who has been making waves on the domestic circuit across age groups for a couple of years now, hails from Jhansi, continuing the city’s hockey tradition of Dhyan Chand, Ashok Kumar and Tushar Khandker.

Among the other big buys were veteran Dutch defender Sander de Wijn (Tamil Nadu Dragons) and German midfielder Thies Prinz (HIGC), both for ₹36 lakh each, and 23-year old Australian striker Cooper Burns (Kalinga Lancers) for ₹34.50 lakh.

Among the women, Argentine defender Agustina Gorzelany became the most expensive player in the league, signed for ₹42 lakh by Shrachi Rarh Bengal Tigers. In fact, Argentina players were the most in demand among the women with the top-three buys of the day all being from Las Leonas, arguably one of the most dominant sides in world hockey. Forward María José Granatto was picked up by Delhi SG Pipers for ₹34 lakh while defender Valentina Raposo Ruiz de los Llanos joined Agustina at SRBT for ₹30 lakh. Among the Indians, experienced midfielder Monika, who went unsold last year, became the costliest buy of the day at ₹15 lakh.

Meanwhile, with no time to bring a new franchise on board, the operations of the UP Rudras team were taken over by the HIL Governing Council for the coming season, ensuring there would be eight teams after all. The team will be called HILGC and managed by Hockey India.