NEW DELHI: Australian fast bowler
Mitchell Starc
conveyed his enthusiasm about joining the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in the upcoming season of the Indian Premier League (IPL) next year.
Starc made history by becoming the most expensive player ever in the IPL. The Kolkata Knight Riders secured his services for a whopping Rs 24.75 crore at the auction held in Dubai on Tuesday.
"Hey KKR fans, I am thrilled to be joining the team for this year's IPL.
I cannot wait to get to Eden Gardens, to experience the home crowd, fans and atmosphere. Ami KKR!," said Starc in a video by KKR.
Starc has now surpassed his captain Pat Cummins, who previously held the record as the most expensive player in IPL history with Rs 20.50 crore. Cummins was acquired by Sunrisers Hyderabad just a few hours before Starc's monumental auction deal.
The pacer started an insane bidding war that lasted for minutes, with Mumbai Indians (MI) and Delhi Capitals (DC) locking horns first. Once they backed out, Gujarat Titans and Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) went ahead with an even bigger bidding war, crossing the Rs 20.50 crore spent by SRH on Cummins. Eventually, GT backed out at Rs 24.75 crore and KKR got Starc for a record-breaking prize.
Starc made his return to the Indian Premier League (IPL) auction after years, having last played in 2015. He has taken 73 wickets in 58 T20Is and is a multi-time World Champion with Australia across all formats. With 647 international wickets in 262 matches, he is among the best fast bowlers of the modern era.
In his IPL career, Starc has 34 wickets to his name in 27 matches he played for Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) from 2014-15.
Earlier, Cummins broke the roof as he became the costliest player in the history of the Indian Premier League when he was acquired by Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) for Rs 20.50 crore on Tuesday at the Coca-Cola Arena in Dubai.
(With ANI Inputs)
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