IPL Mega Auction: RCB goes big for Bhuvneshwar, Deepak Chahar moves to Mumbai from Chennai

Jeddah [Saudi Arabia], November 25 (ANI): Royal Challengers Bengaluru shelled out big bucks for seasoned pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar, while Deepak Chahar made an ‘El Clasico’ move from Chennai to Mumbai in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 mega auction on Monday.

In the capped bowlers set, Tushar Deshpande fetched a big price for himself. His former side, CSK, came in quickly for him at Rs 1 crore, and Rajasthan Royals jumped in at Rs 1.20 crore.

Both CSK and RR kept at it, with the former expressing their intention of bringing Deshpande back to Chepauk. RR was firm in its stance and moved the bid up to Rs 5 crore and quickly up to Rs 6 crore. CSK took a final gamble by raising the paddle for Rs 6.25 crore. But RR pushed their bid to Rs 6.50 crore and made Deshpande a Royal.

Gerald Coetzee was a quick steal by Gujarat Titans for Rs 2.4 crore despite some interest from a couple of franchises.

Bhuvneshwar Kumar, a two-time Purple Cap winner and a household name in the cash-rich league, appeared in the auction with a base price of Rs 2 crore. Mumbai raised the paddle straightaway with LSG coming in swiftly.

It was a proper bidding war for Bhuvneshwar, with franchises willing to break the bank for his services. LSG raised the bid to Rs 10 crore, which made MI back out. It seemed the deal was done and dusted, but RCB came right at the end to acquire the seasoned quick for a price tag of Rs 10.75 crore.

Mukesh Kumar, who has been slowly making ground, saw interest from CSK and PBKS. They ensured a competitive bidding war. The Rs 5 crore bid came in from PBKS, and CSK replied back.

PBKS decided to raise it to Rs 6 core with hopes of fending off competition from CSK, but it was up to no avail. PBKS eventually outbid the five-time champions with Rs 6.50 crore.

But Delhi Capitals decided to exercise its Right To Match option. Punjab hiked their bid to Rs 8 crore, and DC decided to match it to bring Mukehs back to the franchise.

Deepak Chahar was another notable face in the set, with MI and PBKS jumping into the action quickly. Both went on to improve each other bids until PBKS eventually backed out at Rs 7.75 crore.

CSK came in towards the end to raise the bid to Rs 8 crore, but MI remained adamant about bringing Chahar to Wankhede for a price tag of Rs 9.25 crore.

India pacer Akash Deep was another player who fetched big bucks for himself after CSK, PBKS, and Lucknow Super Ginats went after him. LSG managed to outbid everyone with a bid of Rs 8 crore, bolstering their pace attack.

After missing out on Akash Deep, PBKS moved in quickly for New Zealand speedster Lockie Ferguson and acquired him for his base price of Rs 2 crore.

Afghanistan’s star spinner Mujeeb Ur Rahman failed to find a franchise for himself and went unsold.

In the capped wicketkeeper-batters set, South Africa opener Ryan Rickelton, who recently earned a name for himself during the T20I series against India, found a new home with five-time champions Mumbai Indians.

Andhra Pradesh wicketkeeper-batter KS Bharat, who came in with a base price of Rs 75 lakh, didn’t see any bid for him and went unsold.

Australian star Josh Inglis joined Glenn Maxwell, Marcus Stoinis and former captain Ricky Ponting at Punjab Kings for Rs 2.6 crore.

However, his colleague Alex Carey couldn’t land himself a deal with any of the ten franchises. South Africa’s Don Ferreira didn’t see any taker for him as well.