“Thought about which car should I buy” - MI skipper Rohit Sharma recalls bid he received at inaugural IPL auction
Mumbai Indians (MI) captain Rohit Sharma revealed that he was thinking about which car he should buy after he was purchased for $750,000 at the inaugural Indian Premier League (IPL) auction in 2008. The Hitman explained that since he was only 20 at the time, there was nothing much he could think about.
The seasoned cricketer played for the now defunct Deccan Chargers from 2008 to 2010 before being purchased by his current franchise Mumbai for $2 million at the 2011 IPL auction. Rohit has been a part of the franchise ever since, taking over as leader in 2013.
MI finished last in IPL 2022 and will be looking to come up with a much improved showing in the upcoming season. Speaking on Star Sports’ IPL 2023 preview show called ‘Stars on Star’, Rohit went down memory lane and recalled his first auction experience. He candidly admitted:
“Firstly, I didn’t even know how much $750,000 is. A thing like the auction had never happened for us before and nobody even heard of it. My number came very late in the auction, probably after one and half hour.
“After I was sold, I was told that I was getting $750,000, I think it was 3 to 3.5 crore. But I was really happy and thought about which car should I buy. That was the planning I was doing! I was only 20 years old at that time.”
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Under Rohit, Mumbai Indians have become the most successful IPL franchise, winning the prestigious T20 league five times.
“He said, I am ready” - Anil Kumble recalls how Rohit Sharma became MI captain in 2013
Australian legend Ricky Ponting was initially named Mumbai Indians captain for IPL 2013. However, he suffered a form slump with the bat, after which the Aussie was replaced by Rohit as skipper.
In an interaction with JioCinema, Anil Kumble, who was the chief mentor of the franchise during the season, recalled how the change in captaincy took place. He said:
"Mumbai Indians didn't start well in 2013. Ricky Ponting was the captain and we had to change the captaincy because only four overseas players can play. We needed to replace Ricky and then get Rohit Sharma in. I think John Wright needs to get a lot of credit for the way he managed as a coach.
"Unfortunately his (Ponting’s) batting form didn't support and the team lost four out of the five or six games. We had to make the decision... At that point of time, John Wright, I and the owners had the conversation. I still distinctly remember walking into Rohit Sharma's room with John Wright. He said, "Rohit are you keen to take up the captaincy?" There was no hesitancy, he said, ‘Yes, I am ready’.”
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Rohit went on to lead MI to IPL glory in 2013. The rest, as they say, is history.