This year’s Indian Premier League is due to begin on April 10th and preparations for the new season is well under way. Most of the squads will remain intact for last year, though I understand that the Pakistan government is throwing a hissy fit and not allowing their players to participate. However, there are a bunch of new overseas players available, and they will go to auction on Friday. Reserve prices have just been set. Here are the top picks:

• Kevin Pietersen: $1,350,000
• Michael Clarke: $1,000,000
• Andrew Flintoff: $950,000
• J P Duminy: $300,000
• Shaun Tait: $250,000
• Stuart Clark: $250,000
• Paul Collingwood: $250,000

Obviously they could go for a lot more than that if the bidding gets intense.

While I’m sure that Warnie would like to be reunited with his old Hampshire colleague, Pietersen, I’m hoping that the Royals stick to last year’s policy of not wasting money on big names. I’d be quite interested in Mohammad Ashraful who, at $75,000, might be something of a bargain.

Finally I see from the club web site that Shilpa Shetty has bought a stake in the team. Nice to see us adding a bit of glamor to the squad. Shilpa dear, should you happen to be reading this: if Preity Zinta starts bragging about the Silver Hugo she won at the Chicago Film Festival, just tell her that we’ve got someone with a real Hugo Award, and that’s much more valuable.