Sri Lanka's premier domestic competition, Lanka Premier League (LPL), is set to undergo a major shakeup as the illustrious tournament hosted their first-ever auction ahead of the fourth edition. The LPL 2023 auction provided teams with the opportunity to strengthen their squad in a bid to halt Jaffna Kings' monopoly in the competition as more than 350 players registered to go under the hammer on June 14.
Jaffna Kings, previously Jaffna Stallions, are the most successful franchise in the competition's history. They have triumphed in all three seasons of the competition so far and will be looking to add a fourth title in the upcoming edition.
Ahead of the inaugural edition of the LPL player auction, the defending champions revealed pre-selected players signed by the franchise. Veteran Sri Lankan all-rounder and Jaffna Kings' influential skipper Thisara Perera was one of those four players.
Senior Proteas batter David Miller and Rahmanullah Gurbaz are the two overseas players signed by the three-time champions. Meanwhile, young mystery spinner Maheesh Theekshana, who recently won his maiden IPL title with Chennai Super Kings, is the fourth player signed by the franchise.
Jaffna Kings' pre-selected players for LPL 2023
| Player | Role |
| Thisara Perera | Captain, all-rounder |
| David Miller | Middle-order batter |
| Rahmanullah Gurbaz | Opening batter |
| Maheesh Theekshana | Spinner |
A stong auction for the defending champions
Talented left-handed batter Charith Asalanka, who serves as the deputy to Dasun Shanaka in the T20I squad, became Jaffna's first signing of the auction after the three-time champions secured his services for a sum of $80,000 after a bidding war with Dambulla Aura.
Vijayakanth Viyaskanth, who enjoyed a breakthrough season for Jaffna last year, attracted an intense bidding war, only for his former employers to seal his signing with the provision of right-to-match. The most eye-catching bid of the day came for 22-year-old pacer Dilshan Madushanka, who recently grabbed a match-winning four-fer against South Africa A. Jaffna Kings secured his signing after a tug of war with Galle Titans, securing the left-arm pacer for a whopping $92000, the most expensive signing in LPL history.
The three-time champions also roped in veteran Australian dasher Chris Lynn for his base price of $50000 after the accelerated round of auction.
Jaffna Kings' squad for LPL 2023: David Miller, Thisara Perera, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Maheesh Theekshana, Charith Asalanka, Dunith Wellalage, Shoaib Malik, Pathum Kumara, Vijayakanth Viyaskanth, Theesan Vithushan, Asanka Manoj, Nishan Madushka, Asitha Fernando, Hardus Viljoen, Nuwan Thushara, Dilshan Madushanka, Zaman Khan, Ashan Randika, Ratnarajah Thenurathan, Chris Lynn, Asela Gunarathne
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