8 minutes, 80 bids, Rs 27 crore: Inside details of fight among 3 IPL franchises for Rishabh Pant

It took as long as eight minutes and a whopping 80 bids by three franchises in a fierce and aggressive bidding war to secure Delhi’s swashbuckling wicketkeeper-batsman Rishabh Pant for an all-time Indian Premier League (IPL) record sum.

No player in the 17-year history of the IPL has fetched as much money — Rs 27 crore. However, Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) happily splurged on the gifted left-handed batsman, who will most probably also lead the Lucknow-based franchise in IPL 2025.

Apart from the three franchises who battled for Pant — LSG, Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB), and SunrisersHyderabad (SRH) — Delhi Capitals (DC) had the option to use the Right To Match (RTM) card on the first day of the auction on November 24.

An RTM card gave its holder the option, at the end of the bidding for a particular player, to get him back if it matched the last bid made by a rival. When DC was asked to match LSG’s final bid of Rs.27 crore, they backed out, signalling Pant’s move out of Delhi for the first time in his IPL career.

Pant entered the auction with a Rs. 2 crore base price — the maximum permissible limit. He was 27 years and 51 days old on November 24, the day LSG successfully bid for him. So far, he had represented only the DC franchise, previously known as Delhi Daredevils, since making his IPL debut in 2016.

Interestingly, Pant broke the highest bid record of Shreyas Iyer, whom Punjab Kings (PBKS) had bought just a few minutes earlier for an all-time record bid of Rs 26.75 crore. Iyer, who had earlier played under Pant for DC, had broken the record of Aussie left-arm speedster Mitchell Starc, who was bought by Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) for Rs 24.75 crore at last year’s auction.

Also read: IPL Auction: Rishabh Pant becomes most expensive IPL buy at Rs 27 crore

Fierce bidding

The three franchises were locked in a fierce battle to secure Pant, arguably the hottest property in Indian cricket and one of the most exciting in the world. LSG clearly looked more determined than the others to grab him. The moment the Governor of Jeddah, Prince Saud bin Abdullah bin Jalawi, picked the bail with Pant’s name from the box as part of the first set for auction, LSG unleashed their first bid.

LSG owner Sanjiv Goenka seemed so impatient that the auctioneer had to point it out, though with a smile, even as the select audience inside the magnificent Abadi Al Johar Arena started shouting excitedly. “Lots of excitement [for] Rishabh Pant even before we begin. Fans are going crazy,” said the auctioneer.

LSG was immediately challenged by RCB. Both franchises went neck and neck until Rs. 11 crore. After bidding that amount, RCB pulled out, and LSG quoted Rs 11.25 crore. Then, suddenly, SRH jumped into the fray with an Rs 11.50 crore bid, making the race to secure Pant spicier. The two franchises’ battle continued until SRH made the last bid of Rs20.50 crore and pulled out.

LSG then bid Rs. 20.75 crore. But since no other franchise raised its paddle, DC was asked if they were interested in using their RTM card, and they said yes. Then, LSG was given the chance to make one final bid that DC was free to match or decline. DC opted out, and the LSG table, comprising former cricketers Zaheer Khan, the mentor, and Aussie batsman Justin Langer, the head coach, gleefully shook hands with each other. In all, LSG made 41 bids, RCB 21, and SRH 19 before the issue was settled.

“I am really excited to be part of LSG. Thank you to the management for showing lots of faith in me. I am really looking forward to making a lot of memories,” Pant said in a video message sent from Perth, where he was part of the Indian team that defeated Australia in the first Test of the Border-Gavaskar (make space between the two words) Trophy.

While LSG, RCB, and SRH looked very keen to buy Pant, it came as a bit of a surprise that the other franchises showed no interest in the stocky cricketer. Even Punjab Kings, who had the largest purse going into the auction (Rs110.5 crore), didn’t bid.

Goenka sounded satisfied with the buys. “The team seems more or less complete. There is one odd gap here or there that we need to plug. But, overall, it’s been a good day, a happy day, and it’s a balanced squad,” he said at the end of the first day of the auction.

Rapid rise

Pant, originally from Roorkee in Uttarakhand, is known for his hard-hitting batting. His USP is hitting big sixes, particularly on the on-side. He hardly differentiates between a T20 game and a multi-day match, hitting bowlers to their doom. This style of batting—plus his wicket-keeping—makes him a hot property in all three formats of the sport.

Pant played all his competitive cricket for Delhi and gained the reputation of a match-winner quite early in his career. He made his first-class/Ranji Trophy debut in 2015-16 and entered the IPL auction for the first time in February 2016. Delhi Daredevils, as DC was then known, bought him for Rs 1.90 crore, and he was paid the same sum for 2017. But suddenly, his reputation and value jumped skywards, and Delhi retained him for Rs. 15 crore in 2018.

For the 2019 and 2020 auctions, Pant was retained for Rs. 11 crore each, and in 2021 he was again retained, this time for Rs. 15 crore. In 2022, he received Rs. 1 crore more than the previous year but missed playing in the IPL 2023 as he recovered from a horrific road accident in which his car was burnt to ashes in December 2022. He, however, miraculously survived and was soon back to his on-field pyrotechnics. He was retained for Rs. 16 crore each in 2023 and 2024.

But following some reported disagreements between Pant and the joint owners—GMR Sports and Jindal Steel Works—the cricketer apparently chose to go into the auction. It was a masterstroke, as he fetched an all-time record sum.

Also read: Batting sensation Ayush Badoni continues his upward trajectory

Delhi players

A total of 23 Delhi players, including Pant, registered for the two-day auction. Out of these, only 10 were bought. Apart from Pant, middle-order batsman Himmat Singh, young leg-spinner Digvesh Singh, and young speedster Prince Yadav were also bought by LSG. “I am very excited to play for LSG along with Rishabh bhai and others who belong to Delhi. I will give my 100% for LSG,” said Yadav.

Among the other Delhi players, veteran speedster Ishant Sharma and Anuj Rawat went to Gujarat Giants, Simarjeet Singh to SRH, Suyash Sharma to RCB, Vansh Bedi to Chennai Super Kings, and Priyansh Arya to Punjab Kings.

However, seasoned pacer Navdeep Saini, Delhi Ranji vice-captain Yash Dhull, Prince Choudhary, Tejasvi Dahiya, Anshuman Hooda, and Yash Dabas were among those who either remained unsold or whose names were not called. They may get their chances as replacements later due to injuries to players or other emergencies.

Overall, the 10 franchises bought 182 players, including 62 from overseas, spending Rs. 639.15 crore while using eight RTM options.