"He has run ahead of even Bumrah in terms of wicket-taking prowess" - Aakash Chopra on Punjab Kings' acquisition of Arshdeep Singh in IPL 2025 auction
Aakash Chopra reckons Arshdeep Singh was an excellent acquisition for the Punjab Kings (PBKS) at the IPL 2025 auction. He pointed out that the left-arm seamer has been a more potent wicket-taker than the modern bowling great Jasprit Bumrah in T20Is.
PBKS released Arshdeep and retained only two uncapped players, Shashank Singh and Prabhsimran Singh, ahead of the auction. However, they bought back the Punjab seamer for ₹18 crore at the recent auction in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
In a video shared on his YouTube channel 'Aakash Chopra', the former India opener reflected on some of the Punjab Kings' big-ticket buys at the auction. As for Arshdeep, he said (1:25):
"They said at the start that they wanted Arshdeep for ₹18 crore. They would have spent that much only had they retained him. He is a Punjabi and will remain with the Punjabis, and he is very good."
"New ball, old ball, Indian fast bowler, if someone is able to do that consistently after Bumrah, it's Arshdeep. In fact, he has run ahead of even Bumrah in terms of wicket-taking prowess. He remains a little expensive but has run ahead of him because he is a wicket-taker," Chopra added.
The former Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) player noted that PBKS also bought leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal for an exorbitant sum.
"Yuzi Chahal - ₹18 crore. He kept going very far, and we were gobsmacked about how far Yuzi would go. Spinners don't get that much money. They get it at times, Rashid Khan has been retained for as much, but Rashid Khan is only one. He became very rich - ₹18 crore. We are very happy because he is India's best leg-spinner. There is no doubt about that," Chopra observed.
With 96 scalps at an economy rate of 8.19 in 79 innings, Chahal is India's highest wicket-taker in T20Is. Arshdeep, who is second on that list, has accounted for 95 dismissals at an economy rate of 8.32 in just 60 T20I innings. Bumrah's 89 T20I wickets have come in 69 innings, albeit at an outstanding economy rate of 6.27.
"They went and went, and didn't stop" - Aakash Chopra on Punjab Kings' acquisition of Shreyas Iyer
![Shreyas Iyer will likely captain the Punjab Kings in IPL 2025. [P/C: iplt20.com]](https://statico.sportskeeda.com/editor/2024/11/c7273-17329382043836-1920.jpg?w=500)
In the same video, Aakash Chopra noted that the Punjab Kings spent a massive amount to buy Shreyas Iyer ahead of Rishabh Pant.
"The big question was whether (Rishabh) Pant would become a part of Project Punter (Ricky Ponting), but it didn't happen. They said they were focussing on Shreyas Iyer first. They went and went, and didn't stop - ₹26.75 crore, and we said stop it," he said (2:55).
The cricketer-turned-commentator added that the IPL 2014 finalists had to pay a little extra money to acquire Shreyas as they potentially needed him as their captain.
"He went that far. They needed a skipper, and they had zeroed in on Shreyas Iyer as their captain. A little premium is applied for the captain. You have to pay 15 to 20 percent extra money because he is the captain," Chopra observed.
Chopra pointed out that the Punjab Kings spent nearly ₹63 crore, more than 50 percent of the total budget, on just three players. He added that the franchise was potentially forced to make some compromises elsewhere, considering none of them is a multi-skilled player.