- By Vishal Pushkar
- Wed, 20 Dec 2023 06:45 PM (IST)
- Source:JND
In a surprising turn of events during the IPL 2024 auction, Punjab Kings (PBKS) made an inadvertent mistake by purchasing the "wrong player." The blunder occurred when PBKS seemingly mixed up the names of two uncapped Indian players, resulting in the unintended acquisition of Shashank Singh.
During the auction in Dubai, the auctioneer Mallika Sagar announced the name of 32-year-old Shashank Singh, an uncapped batting all-rounder who represents Chhattisgarh in domestic cricket. Shashank, who went unsold in the previous year's auction, found a team for the upcoming 2024 IPL season as Punjab Kings emerged as the sole bidder, securing him at a base price of Rs 20 lakhs.
PBKS co-owner Preity Zinta raised the paddle after a brief discussion with her team members, and Mallika completed the sale by bringing down her hammer. However, the mistake came to light when PBKS realized their error during the next set of players, specifically with Tanay Thyagarajan being the first name up.
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Owners Preity Zinta and Ness Wadia promptly informed the auctioneer that they had mistakenly identified Shashank as another player. Despite the acknowledgment of the error, the auctioneer denied any reversal of the bid, leaving PBKS with an unexpected addition to their squad for the upcoming IPL season.
"Oh! You don't want the player?" asked Mallika. "We are talking about Shashank Singh. But the hammer has come down. Player No. 236 and 237 both went to you, I think." Wadia and Preity were eager to re-enter him into the auction, yet auction regulations prevent such action once the hammer confirms a purchase, solidifying the transaction.
The franchise issued a clarification on Wednesday after the confusion related to Shashank Singh's bidding. "Media have reported on Shashank Singh being bought erroneously by the Punjab Kings. The Kings would like to clarify that the player was always on our target list."
"The confusion was due to 2 players of the same name being on the list. We are delighted to have him on board and see him contribute to our success," it said in an official statement.