Former Pakistan cricketer asserted that Rishabh Pant will fetch around INR 50 crore in the auction after his heroics in the Test series against New Zealand.
Rishabh Pant is expected to break the bank in the upcoming IPL 2025 Auction after the wicketkeeper batter has parted ways with Delhi Capitals. Pant offers three special skills – batting, wicketkeeping and captaincy as several teams will be ready to engage in the bidding wars. It was a bit shocking for many when DC let Pant go and didn’t retain him in the IPL 2025 retention, and it is highly unlikely that his previous franchise will bid or use the RTM card for him in the auction now. Hectic negotiations were going on for the last one month and a complicated management structure led to Pant quitting the franchise for which he played for eight years and captained in three seasons.
Under Rishabh Pant’s leadership, Delhi Capitals finished the IPL 2025 league stage with seven wins in 14 matches.(AFP)
Pant is among the few big stars who will enter the auction. Several former cricketers have predicted that he will attract the biggest bid in the ceremony.
Former Pakistan cricketer Basit Ali asserted that Pant will fetch around INR 50 crore in the auction after his heroics in the Test series against New Zealand.
“Rishabh Pant scored 60 in the first innings and 64 in the second. What can I say about this kid? People say he should go for INR 25 crore in the IPL auction. However, I think he should be sold for INR 50 crore. When he batted on this pitch, it seemed like a flat track. He hit wherever he wanted to but his shot selection was good,” Basit said on his YouTube channel.
Meanwhile, the decision to release Pant may lead to a complete overhaul of the Capitals’ strategy, with the potential to attract big-name players to fill the gap left by Pant’s departure. The Capitals will need to capitalise on their available budget to secure impactful players capable of leading the franchise in a new direction. They retained four players – Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Tristan Stubbs and Abishek Porel.
‘The shot that Ashwin played was not expected’: Basit Ali
Basit also talked about India’s poor batting performance against New Zealand and he specifically pointed out Ravichandran Ashwins’ dismissal who got out while attempting a reverse sweep.
“The shot that Ashwin played was not expected from a senior player who has played 100 Tests. You tried to hit a reverse sweep when a partnership was needed,” he added.
