(Image source: X.com)
[Saba Sports News] Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) mentor Gautam Gambhir revealed the team’s strategy to splurge INR 24.75 crore on Australia pacer Mitchell Starc in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 auction.
Starc became the most expensive IPL buy ever, beating his teammate Pat Cummins’ record of INR 20.50 crore, which only lasted for a brief period.
Mumbai Indias (MI) and Delhi Capitals (DC) started the bidding war for Starc. However, as both the franchises were short on purse, they had to pull out. Gujarat Titans (GT) and KKR entered the picture, locking horns in a never-seen-before IPL bid. Eventually, the Knight Riders acquired Starc’s services.
Gambhir talked about the reason behind signing Starc, saying that the fast-bowler can bowl in all three phases of the innings, having an additional quality of becoming the leader of their young pace attack.
“He is an X-factor, there is no doubt about that. Someone who can bowl with the new ball, bowl in the death overs, and more importantly, someone who can lead the attack,” Gambhir said as quoted on JioCinema.
“He is going to be of massive help to our two domestic bowlers because both of them are very talented and you need someone to help them out in the middle and Starc covers those bases. It is not only about his bowling but also about leading the attack and helping all the guys around him. So, somebody will have to pay for it,” he added.
The former KKR captain thinks that they have built a strong bowling unit for the upcoming season, which they will vary as per the conditions.
“We always wanted to have a stronger bowling attack and now we have the options with Mujeeb (Ur Rahman), Gus (Atkinson), Sunil (Narine), Varun (Chakravarthy), and Mitchell Starc along with two Indian seamers and Chetan Sakariya. Now, we have enough options where we can play different combinations looking at the venue as well. For me, it has always been about having a strong bowling lineup compared to a very strong batting lineup,” Gambhir mentioned.