India Pacer Says He Was 'Not Shocked But Bit Disappointed' After Being Released Ahead of IPL Auction

Chetan Sakariya, who has played one ODI and two T20Is, was picked up by the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 auction but said that was dissapointed at not being retained.

The left-arm pacer burst onto the scene for Rajasthan Royals and was bought by Delhi Capitals (DC) whopping INR 4.20 crore ahead of IPL 2022. But he was let go by DC ahead of IPL 2024 acution.

“I wasn’t shocked but I was a bit disappointed. But from the team’s perspective, they made the right decision. I wasn’t able to perform to the level that was expected from me. Maybe I didn’t do justice to my price tag,” Sakariya was quoted as saying by Sportskeeda.

“They (DC) already have several Indian options in Ishant (Sharma) Bhai, Khaleel Ahmed and Mukesh Bhai. After I didn’t hit the ground running, I naturally went back in the pecking order,” he added.

But his time at the Capitals was a learning for the young pacer ashe revaled that he got to spend time with Bangladesh fast bwoler Mustafizur Rahman.

“I used to speak a lot with Mustafizur Bhai and he used to guide me a lot about how to plan each delivery and how to make full use of the field placements. It just mesmerized me as to just how much a bowler can think about adjusting the field and helped me in my game. I hope I get to learn a lot from Mitchell Starc tol and add a lot more to my armoury,” Sakariya said.

Lookikng forward to his new team, Sakariya said he is excited to work with KKR mentor Gautam Gambhir.

“When the auction was going on, I just had one wish in my mind that I would want to get picked where I would get maximum opportunities to play. Of course I will have to perform well that’s always a given. I just wanted game-time felt there were only two teams who were looking to fill their slots in the bowling department and KKR was one of them. The money didn’t matter, I just wanted to go to a team where I would get gametime,” Sakariya said.