This was our most successful auction: Punjab Kings co-owner Ness Wadia
Punjab Kings co-owner Ness Wadia has lauded franchise think tank and management, terming the 2022 Indian Premier League (IPL) mega auction as their most successful since the inception of the league in 2008. Wadia has now put the onus on franchise head coach Anil Kumble and the players to deliver at the tournament and win the title for the first time.
PBKS had the highest purse as compared to the other nine teams with INR 72 crore in their pocket. The franchise had drafted only two players including Indian opener Mayank Agarwal (INR 14 crore) and uncapped pacer Arshdeep Singh (INR 4 crore).
PBKS were not shy on making some big money purchases as they bagged several prominent players including Liam Livingstone (INR 11.5 crore), Kagiso Rabada (INR 9.25 crore), Shahrukh Khan (INR 9 crore), Shikhar Dhawan (INR 8.25 crore) and Odean Smith (INR 6 crore).
At least a place in the top four is necessary: Ness Wadia
“50 percent of the battle is getting the right team, which is what we’ve done. Now it’s up to the players, coaches Anil (Kumble), Jonty (Rhodes) and Damien (Wright), to really take us to that elusive title we have been waiting for so long,” Wadia was quoted by Hindustan Times.
“Or at least a place in the top four play-offs because we have had a bad run the last four-five years.”“We have well-balanced squad now. We bat all the way down to eight or nine and have the bowlers who can do the job both upfront and at the death. I would say this was the toughest and most successful auction for us since the first edition in 2008,” claimed Wadia.
PBKS squad for IPL 2022
Mayank Agarwal, Arshdeep Singh, Shikhar Dhawan, Kagiso Rabada, Jonny Bairstow, Rahul Chahar, Shahrukh Khan, Harpreet Brar, Prabhsimran Singh, Jitesh Sharma, Ishan Porel, Liam Livingstone, Odean Smith, Sandeep Sharma, Raj Bawa, Rishi Dhawan, Prerak Mankad, Vaibhav Arora, Writtick Chatterjee, Baltej Dhanda, Ansh Patel, Nathan Ellis, Atharva Taide, Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Benny Howell
