Former Australia captain Michael Clarke manages to stay in the news one way or the other. This time he has come up with a controversial statement pertaining to the IPL auctions. Clarke believes that his once-teammate Steve Smith might not play the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021 owing to the small amount he fetched at the auction.
Rajasthan Royals had released Steve Smith ahead of IPL 2021 auctions:
Steve Smith was retained by the Rajasthan Royals in 2018 mega auctions for a whopping salary of INR 12 crores. Before the IPL 2021 auctions, the Royals management decided to release Steve Smith. The Australian batting stalwart who had smashed two consecutive 61 ball centuries against India felt he would be one of the most sought-after players in the auction. He had set a base price of INR 2 crores going into the auction.
Smith was bought for just INR 2.2 crores:
There was a buzz surrounding Smith finding takers in Royal Challengers Bangalore and Punjab Kings. RCB true to the speculations were the first one who raised the bid for Smith. But unexpectedly it was Delhi Capitals who entered the bidding fray. Their bid of INR 2.2 crores proved to be the winning bid for Smith. It was a number way below anyone’s expectations. The DC franchise had landed a steal. While Smith’s teammate Glenn Maxwell went for a whopping INR 14.25 crores.
Steve Smith has every reason to feel gutted about but he can look at this season as an opportunity. If he has a tremendous IPL his stakes will definitely rise in the mega auction scheduled to take place next year.
Michael Clarke believes Steve Smith might skip this year’s IPL:
But former Australian skipper Clarke believes that Smith might skip this season of IPL. He was quoted saying, “I know his T20 performances haven’t been as good as he would have liked. Last year’s IPL wasn’t great. I’m very surprised he has gone for the amount of money he has, just under $400,000-which is still good money. But when you look at what he was getting (last season) and his role as captain of Rajasthan, don’t be surprised if there’s a little hamstring strain the day the plane is meant to fly to India.”
Smith went on to add that, “For him to go away for an eight-week tournament and quarantine before the tournament starts call it 11 weeks. I don’t think he is going to give up 11 weeks away from his family and his partner for $380,000.”
It will be interesting to see how this episode of Steve Smith’s association with IPL pans out. Will it all be about money or is there a hunger to make a statement? Time is the best judge in this matter.
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