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CHENNAI: South Africa all-rounder Chris Morris became the most expensive player bought for the Indian Premier League on Thursday, when Rajasthan Royals paid $2.25 million for him. Taking centre stage in a high-spending auction for this year's tournament, the fee smashed the record $2.2 million paid for Yuvraj Singh by Delhi in 2015. Australian bowler Pat Cummins had previously been the most expensive foreign player, costing Kolkata Knight Riders $2.17m in 2019. "The most expensive player in IPL history is now a Royal," Rajasthan said as it trumpeted the signing of Morris, who will join a team including England stars Jofra Archer and Ben Stokes. "It was quite a high price, but at the same time, the role in the team and the demand for the role plays a large part," Royals' director of cricket Kumar Sangakkara said. The 33-year-old Morris is a fast bowler and hard-hitting lower order batsman. He has played for Rajasthan previously, in 2015. MOEEN FEE TRIPLES Morris … [Read more...] about Cricket: Big hitter Morris smashes IPL auction record with US$2.25 million fee

HONG KONG: A 72-year-old bottle of Glen Grant single malt whisky from Scotland fetched more than US$54,000 in an auction in Hong Kong on Friday (Jan 29). It is the first time that the 1948 Glen Grant whisky, by independent bottler Gordon & MacPhail, was offered in an auction. It is number 88 of 290 decanters bottled by the company and was auctioned off by Bonhams, fetching a price of 421,600 Hong Kong dollars (US$54,300) including premium. The bottle had a book estimate of 300,000 to 380,000 Hong Kong dollars (US$38,000 to US$49,000). The whisky, the oldest from the Glen Grant distillery, is in a Dartington crystal decanter with an American black walnut presentation box. Despite the economic uncertainty brought by the COVID-19 pandemic, interest in rare whiskies remains high. Compared to other investment commodities, collectable whisky has done well in the past 10 years with a four-fold increase in prices, said Christopher Pong, wine and whisky specialist at Bonhams. … [Read more...] about 72-year-old Scotch whisky fetches more than US$54,000 in Hong Kong auction

A rare Botticelli portrait sold for US$92.2 million (S$122.50 million) at auction at Sotheby's in New York on Thursday (Jan 28), a world record for any work by the Italian artist. The Renaissance artist's Young Man Holding A Roundel is one of only around a dozen of his portraits known to survive today. Sandro Botticelli's large-scale Birth Of Venus and Primavera paintings are displayed in Florence's Uffizi Gallery. Sotheby's said it was one of the most significant and valuable portraits of any period ever to appear at auction. The US$92.2 million price at the auction, conducted by bidders on the phone and online, included a buyer's premium. The identity of the buyer was not immediately known. The 15th-century work, which has also been known as Young Man Holding A Medallion, had carried a presale estimate of US$80 million, and Sotheby's had thought it might fetch more than US$100 million. "There are a number of artists that ... are Olympian really in their genius. And … [Read more...] about Rare Botticelli portrait sells for record US$92.2m at New York auction

BRASILIA: Brazil's government will not seek to bar Chinese telecom equipment maker Huawei from 5G network auctions slated for June this year, newspaper Estado de S Paulo reported on Saturday (Jan 16), citing government and industry sources. Financial costs potentially worth billions of dollars and the exit of ally President Donald Trump from the White House are forcing President Jair Bolsonaro to backtrack on his opposition to Huawei bidding to provide the next generation cellular network for carriers in Brazil, the paper said. Like Trump, Bolsonaro opposes Huawei on the unproven grounds that it shares confidential data with China's Communist government. But, with China being Brazil's largest trade partner and Huawei's ability to compete on price, he has faced resistance from industry and within his own government, including from Vice President Hamilton Mourao. Estado de S Paulo quoted Mourao as saying all companies that provide the necessary guarantees on respecting Brazil's … [Read more...] about Brazil’s Bolsonaro to allow China’s Huawei in 5G auctions

Not even the coronavirus can get in the way of intrepid Belgian reporter and comic book legend Tintin. Comic book lovers and tourists alike can catch a socially distanced glimpse of a Tintin drawing by Herge in Paris before it goes under the hammer on Thursday (Jan 14), estimated to sell between 2 million euros (S$3.2 million) and 3 million euros and possibly break the record for the most expensive comic book art in history. The 1936 work in Chinese ink, gouache and watercolour, was destined as a cover for The Blue Lotus, the fifth volume of the Belgian journalist’s adventures. But it never sat on any book store shelves because it was rejected for being too expensive to reproduce on a wide scale – a victim of its own rare craftsmanship. “They had to do a four colour process printing, with an additional colour. (But the publisher) thought that the comic albums were already expensive. Reproducing this cover art would increase the production costs,” said comics expert Eric … [Read more...] about Rare Tintin comic book art expected to sell for millions at Paris auction