New Delhi, Dec 24 (IANS): In the IPL 2023 mini player auction held in Kochi, opener Mayank Agarwal became the most expensive Indian player when 2016 champions Sunrisers Hyderabad acquired his services for INR 8.25 crores.
Agarwal's promotion to captaining his former team Punjab Kings in IPL 2022 didn't lead to a truckload of runs as he scored just 196 runs in 13 matches at an average of 16.33, with the side ending at sixth place in the ten-team points table.
In November, ahead of the mini auction, Agarwal was released by the side after having joined them in 2018, with Shikhar Dhawan announced as new Punjab Kings captain. Now with Hyderabad having Agarwal, they now have a player in their ranks who's featured in 113 IPL games and has leadership experience too.
Former India captain Anil Kumble, who was Punjab Kings' head coach till 2022 season, backed Agarwal's move to Hyderabad, saying the new destination for the Bangalore-based player will help him grow as a cricketer.
"Mayank has been the captain for Punjab and he was let go. I am really happy that he went to a team like Sunrisers. I think a new environment will certainly help Mayank and he is wonderful to have around the team," said Kumble on Mastercard Match Centre Live show on JioCinema.
In speaking to the digital broadcasters of the IPL, Agarwal expressed his excitement to work with Hyderabad team having Brian Lara as head coach, Muttiah Muralitharan as spin bowling coach, Dale Steyn as fast bowling coach, Simon Helmot as assistant coach and Hemang Badani as fielding coach.
"I was partially nervous and excited, but I am glad to be part of SRH and really looking forward to working with Muralitharan and Lara, players with a lot of international experience and success," he said.
Kumble, also a former India head coach, saw a funny side on Agarwal mentioning Muralitharan. "I don't know how much Murali will be able to help Mayank with his batting, but Brian Lara is there."
Apart from Agarwal, Hyderabad also acquired Indian players like Mayank Markande, Vivrant Sharma, Samarth Vyas, Sanvir Singh, Upendra Yadav, Mayank Dagar, Nitish Kumar Reddy, and Anmolpreet Singh, in the IPL 2023 mini player auction.