Srinivas Bhogle and Purnendu Maji look back at the four earlier editions of the IPL and see which players were most valuable, and offered the best value for money
As another IPL gets ready to take off, it might be a good idea to look back at the four earlier editions and see which players were most valuable, and offered the best value for money.
To determine the most valuable players, we look at the most valuable player index (MVPI) which collapses a player's batting, bowling and fielding performance into a single statistic -- which we could continue to call 'runs' (within quotes).
We have found that a good way to measure a player's value is to use the paisa vasool index. To calculate the paisa vasool index, we divide a player's salary by his MVPI. For example, Kallis' MVPI, totaled over the 16 matches he was available for in IPL3, was 780 'runs'. His IPL3 price was $900,000. After dividing $900,000 by 780 we get 1153. For every 'run' that Kallis scored, he earned $1153!
A paisa vasool index of 1153 constitutes a very good performance. After tracking the paisa vasool index, which we shall henceforth abbreviate to PVI, we have concluded that a PVI of 1500 is a kind of par for IPL players who come in via the auction route.'
In the four tables below, we list the 25 most valuable players of the four previous IPLs and their PVI.
IPL1 in 2008
| Rank | Player Name | Team | From | Runs | Strike Rate | W | Eco | M | MVPI | PVI |
| 1 | Shane Watson | RR | AUS | 472 | 151.8 | 17 | 7.1 | 15 | 876 | 143 |
| 2 | S Jayasuriya | MI | SL | 514 | 166.3 | 4 | 7.6 | 14 | 729 | 1337 |
| 3 | Yusuf Pathan | RR | IND | 435 | 179.0 | 8 | 8.2 | 16 | 697 | 681 |
| 4 | Shaun Marsh | KXI | AUS | 616 | 139.7 | 0 | - | 11 | 672 | 45 |
| 5 | V Sehwag | DD | IND | 406 | 185.4 | 3 | 12.1 | 14 | 575 | 1450 |
| 6 | Gautam Gambhir | DD | IND | 534 | 140.9 | 0 | - | 14 | 571 | 1270 |
| 7 | Albie Morkel | CSK | SA | 241 | 147.9 | 17 | 8.3 | 13 | 534 | 1218 |
| 8 | Suresh Raina | CSK | IND | 421 | 142.7 | 1 | 9.0 | 16 | 525 | 1237 |
| 9 | Sohail Tanvir | RR | PAK | 36 | 124.1 | 24 | 6.5 | 11 | 505 | 170 |
| 10 | Rohit Sharma | DC | IND | 404 | 148.0 | 1 | 6.3 | 13 | 499 | 1503 |
| 11 | Adam Gilchrist | DC | AUS | 436 | 137.1 | 0 | - | 14 | 492 | 1423 |
| 12 | MS Dhoni | CSK | IND | 414 | 133.5 | 0 | - | 16 | 471 | 3187 |
| 13 | Irfan Pathan | KXI | IND | 131 | 112.9 | 15 | 6.6 | 14 | 468 | 1975 |
| 14 | Maharoof | DD | SL | 125 | 158.2 | 15 | 6.9 | 10 | 452 | 498 |
| 15 | Yuvraj Singh | KXI | IND | 299 | 162.5 | 3 | 9.3 | 14 | 449 | 2371 |
| 16 | Sourav Ganguly | KKR | IND | 349 | 113.7 | 6 | 6.4 | 13 | 437 | 2502 |
| 17 | Shane Warne | RR | AUS | 70 | 118.6 | 19 | 7.8 | 15 | 417 | 1078 |
| 18 | K Sangakkara | KXI | SL | 320 | 161.6 | 0 | - | 10 | 408 | 1716 |
| 19 | Graeme Smith | RR | SA | 441 | 121.8 | 0 | - | 11 | 407 | 1000 |
| 20 | Shaun Pollock | MI | SA | 147 | 132.4 | 11 | 6.7 | 13 | 394 | 1395 |
| 21 | Piyush Chawla | KXI | IND | 90 | 152.5 | 18 | 8.9 | 15 | 390 | 1027 |
| 22 | Manpreet Gony | CSK | IND | 35 | 184.2 | 17 | 7.4 | 16 | 378 | 79 |
| 23 | Dwayne Bravo | MI | WI | 178 | 132.8 | 11 | 8.2 | 9 | 372 | 259 |
| 24 | Rahul Dravid | RCB | IND | 371 | 124.5 | 0 | - | 14 | 361 | 2870 |
| 25 | S Asnodkar | RR | IND | 311 | 133.5 | 0 | - | 9 | 331 | 91 |
IPL2 in 2009 (in South Africa)
| Rank | Player Name | Team | From | Runs | Strike Rate | W | Eco | M | MVPI | PVI |
| 1 | Adam Gilchrist | DC | AUS | 495 | 152.3 | 0 | - | 16 | 753 | 956 |
| 2 | M Hayden | CSK | AUS | 572 | 144.8 | 0 | - | 12 | 678 | 537 |
| 3 | Suresh Raina | CSK | IND | 434 | 140.9 | 7 | 5.9 | 14 | 667 | 975 |
| 4 | AB de Villiers | DD | SA | 512 | 130.6 | 0 | - | 15 | 609 | 500 |
| 5 | Rohit Sharma | DC | IND | 326 | 115.2 | 11 | 7 | 16 | 510 | 1513 |
| 6 | Brad Hodge | KKR | AUS | 365 | 117.7 | 7 | 8.1 | 12 | 467 | 208 |
| 7 | Irfan Pathan | KXI | IND | 196 | 124.1 | 17 | 7.7 | 14 | 453 | 2042 |
| 8 | J-P Duminy | MI | SA | 372 | 114.5 | 4 | 5.8 | 13 | 450 | 2083 |
| 9 | Yuvraj Singh | KXI | IND | 340 | 115.3 | 6 | 7.1 | 14 | 444 | 2394 |
| 10 | Anil Kumble | RCB | IND | 16 | 84.2 | 21 | 5.9 | 16 | 436 | 1180 |
| 11 | Dinesh Karthik | DD | IND | 288 | 132.7 | 0 | - | 15 | 433 | 1231 |
| 12 | A Symonds | DC | AUS | 249 | 150 | 7 | 6.7 | 8 | 420 | 1655 |
| 13 | Yusuf Pathan | RR | IND | 243 | 132.8 | 7 | 6.9 | 13 | 412 | 1136 |
| 14 | Jacques Kallis | RCB | SA | 362 | 109 | 6 | 7.7 | 15 | 411 | 2221 |
| 15 | T Dilshan | DD | SL | 371 | 122 | 0 | 6.1 | 14 | 408 | 613 |
| 16 | RP Singh | DC | IND | 8 | 47.1 | 23 | 7 | 16 | 406 | 2218 |
| 17 | MS Dhoni | CSK | IND | 332 | 127.2 | 0 | - | 14 | 400 | 3752 |
| 18 | Dwayne Bravo | MI | WI | 218 | 107.4 | 11 | 7.8 | 10 | 395 | 358 |
| 19 | Ravindra Jadeja | RR | IND | 295 | 110.9 | 6 | 6.5 | 13 | 395 | 75 |
| 20 | Harbhajan Singh | MI | IND | 84 | 158.5 | 12 | 5.8 | 13 | 383 | 2189 |
| 21 | Sachin Tendulkar | MI | IND | 364 | 120.1 | 0 | 9.7 | 13 | 375 | 2945 |
| 22 | M Muralitharan | CSK | SL | 8 | 100 | 14 | 5.2 | 13 | 361 | 1638 |
| 23 | Ashish Nehra | DD | IND | 1 | 100 | 19 | 6.8 | 12 | 349 | 1113 |
| 24 | Lasith Malinga | MI | SL | 0 | 0 | 18 | 6.3 | 13 | 344 | 1004 |
| 25 | Herschelle Gibbs | DC | SA | 328 | 107.5 | 0 | - | 14 | 341 | 1685 |
IPL3 in 2010
| Rank | Player Name | Team | From | Runs | Strike Rate | W | Eco | M | MVPI | PVI |
| 1 | Suresh Raina | CSK | IND | 524 | 143.6 | 6 | 7.5 | 16 | 784 | 829 |
| 2 | Jacques Kallis | RCB | SA | 572 | 115.8 | 13 | 8.4 | 16 | 780 | 1153 |
| 3 | Kieron Pollard | MI | WI | 273 | 185.7 | 15 | 7.4 | 14 | 772 | 972 |
| 4 | Andrew Symonds | DC | AUS | 429 | 125.8 | 12 | 7 | 16 | 755 | 1787 |
| 5 | Sachin Tendulkar | MI | IND | 618 | 132.9 | 0 | - | 15 | 631 | 1777 |
| 6 | Yusuf Pathan | RR | IND | 333 | 165.7 | 5 | 7.2 | 14 | 589 | 806 |
| 7 | Murali Vijay | CSK | IND | 458 | 156.8 | 0 | - | 15 | 588 | 85 |
| 8 | Robin Uthappa | RCB | IND | 376 | 172.5 | 0 | - | 16 | 581 | 1376 |
| 9 | Irfan Pathan | KXI | IND | 276 | 148.4 | 15 | 9.2 | 14 | 579 | 1599 |
| 10 | Harbhajan Singh | MI | IND | 105 | 166.7 | 17 | 7 | 15 | 557 | 1526 |
| 11 | M Jayawardene | KXI | SL | 439 | 147.3 | 0 | - | 13 | 536 | 887 |
| 12 | Virender Sehwag | DD | IND | 356 | 163.3 | 3 | 4.1 | 14 | 514 | 1623 |
| 13 | Rohit Sharma | DC | IND | 404 | 133.8 | 2 | 8.1 | 16 | 499 | 1502 |
| 14 | Ambati Rayudu | MI | IND | 356 | 144.7 | 0 | - | 14 | 489 | 61 |
| 15 | K Sangakkara | KXI | SL | 357 | 138.9 | 0 | - | 13 | 486 | 1439 |
| 16 | Amit Mishra | DD | IND | 39 | 76.5 | 17 | 6.8 | 14 | 481 | 62 |
| 17 | Pragyan Ojha | DC | IND | 3 | 37.5 | 21 | 7.3 | 16 | 477 | 63 |
| 18 | Sourav Ganguly | KKR | IND | 493 | 117.7 | 0 | 10.8 | 14 | 471 | 2318 |
| 19 | Albie Morkel | CSK | SA | 198 | 151.1 | 11 | 8.5 | 14 | 471 | 1381 |
| 20 | Naman Ojha | RR | IND | 377 | 132.3 | 0 | - | 14 | 452 | 66 |
| 21 | Anil Kumble | RCB | IND | 6 | 54.5 | 17 | 6.4 | 16 | 452 | 1106 |
| 22 | Saurabh Tiwary | MI | IND | 419 | 135.6 | 0 | - | 16 | 451 | 89 |
| 23 | Adam Gilchrist | DC | AUS | 289 | 156.2 | 0 | - | 16 | 446 | 1568 |
| 24 | MS Dhoni | CSK | IND | 287 | 136.7 | 0 | - | 13 | 425 | 3529 |
| 25 | CH Gayle | KKR | WI | 292 | 158.7 | 4 | 9.5 | 9 | 405 | 1553 |
IPL4 in 2011
| Rank | Player Name | Team | From | Runs | Strike Rate | W | Eco | M | MVPI | PVI |
| 1 | CH Gayle | RCB | WI | 608 | 183.1 | 8 | 6.8 | 12 | 953 | 240 |
| 2 | Lasith Malinga | MI | SL | 8 | 88.9 | 28 | 6 | 16 | 629 | 738 |
| 3 | Yusuf Pathan | KKR | IND | 283 | 140.8 | 13 | 6.1 | 15 | 608 | 3207 |
| 4 | Paul Valthaty | KXI | IND | 463 | 137 | 7 | 7.8 | 14 | 600 | 73 |
| 5 | Shaun Marsh | KXI | AUS | 504 | 146.5 | 0 | - | 14 | 573 | 698 |
| 6 | Virender Sehwag | DD | IND | 424 | 176.7 | 0 | - | 11 | 564 | 3191 |
| 7 | Virat Kohli | RCB | IND | 557 | 121.1 | 2 | 8.2 | 16 | 558 | 2997 |
| 8 | MS Dhoni | CSK | IND | 392 | 158.7 | 0 | - | 16 | 551 | 3035 |
| 9 | Yuvraj Singh | PWS | IND | 343 | 131.4 | 9 | 6.6 | 14 | 550 | 3273 |
| 10 | Suresh Raina | CSK | IND | 438 | 134.8 | 4 | 7.3 | 16 | 546 | 2212 |
| 11 | Jacques Kallis | KKR | SA | 424 | 112.2 | 7 | 7.1 | 15 | 522 | 1957 |
| 12 | Shane Watson | RR | AUS | 330 | 130.4 | 6 | 6.7 | 11 | 490 | 2276 |
| 13 | Sachin Tendulkar | MI | IND | 553 | 113.3 | 0 | - | 16 | 487 | 3430 |
| 14 | Ravindra Jadeja | KTK | IND | 283 | 124.1 | 8 | 7.3 | 14 | 465 | 2043 |
| 15 | R Ashwin | CSK | IND | 2 | 33.3 | 20 | 6.2 | 16 | 456 | 1731 |
| 16 | Michael Hussey | CSK | AUS | 492 | 118.8 | 0 | - | 14 | 456 | 865 |
| 17 | Amit Mishra | DC | IND | 68 | 138.8 | 19 | 6.7 | 14 | 451 | 665 |
| 18 | Munaf Patel | MI | IND | 0 | 0 | 22 | 6.6 | 15 | 439 | 1480 |
| 19 | Adam Gilchrist | KXI | AUS | 383 | 129.8 | 0 | - | 14 | 437 | 2061 |
| 20 | Murali Vijay | CSK | IND | 434 | 128 | 0 | - | 16 | 436 | 1917 |
| 21 | Shikhar Dhawan | DC | IND | 400 | 129 | 1 | 5.5 | 14 | 432 | 695 |
| 22 | Rahul Sharma | PWS | IND | 24 | 114.3 | 16 | 5.5 | 14 | 431 | 51 |
| 23 | Harbhajan Singh | MI | IND | 103 | 145.1 | 14 | 7 | 15 | 413 | 2921 |
| 24 | K Sangakkara | DC | SL | 358 | 122.2 | 0 | - | 13 | 409 | 1710 |
| 25 | Jesse Ryder | PWS | NZ | 292 | 148.2 | 4 | 7.7 | 13 | 406 | 369 |
