Shah Rukh Khan (left) and Mitchell Starc© X (formerly Twitter)
Australian cricket team fast bowler Mitchell Starc made history on Tuesday by becoming the most expensive player in the history of the Indian Premier League (IPL). The veteran cricketer sparked a major bidding war that ended with Kolkata Knight Riders paying a whopping Rs 24.75 crore for his services. A fan on social media asked KKR owner and Bollywood star Shah Rukh Khan, whose film ‘Dunki’ releases on December 21, if the first day collection of his film would be more than Starc’s auction price and he came up with a funny response.
“This is my question, brother. Chalo and cheese. The car will come in the ass.!! Ha Ha “(Why is this a question? Donkey is going to bring me money and this (Stark) took my money away),” he posted on X (formerly Twitter) in response to a fan’s question.
Such are the unexpected knocks of the IPL that left one-third of Australia’s formidable pace trio, Josh Hazlewood, unsold in the first round of the auction from a base price of Rs 2 crore.
Gujarat Titans and KKR were involved in a long and exhilarating bidding battle for Starc before the latter signed him to a record deal.
Starc, 33, has usually prioritized international duty over IPL, but decided to go into the auction with one eye on the T20 World Cup that follows the IPL.
He played just two seasons of the Indian Premier League, taking 34 wickets in 27 matches at an average of 20.38.
In contrast, Cummins was a regular player in the IPL but skipped the 2023 edition to focus on the Ashes and ODI World Cup.
An intense bidding war for Cummins ensued with Mumbai Indians, Royal Challengers Bangalore, Chennai Super Kings and Sunrisers Hyderabad frantically raising their oars to secure the services of the fast bowling all-rounder.
In the end, it was SRH who broke Cummins’ budget, who bagged the highest ever bid surpassing the Rs 18.5 crore that Punjab Kings paid for England’s Sam Curran last year.
This was not the first time Cummins had attracted huge sums in an IPL auction. Before the 2020 edition, KKR paid Rs 15.5 crore for his services.
(with PTI inputs)
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