Sangakkara believes Morris' contract of INR 16.25 crores is a bit on the higher side.
South African all-rounder Chris Morris broke all records by becoming the player with the most attractive bid in the IPL auction history when he was picked for INR 16.25 crores by the Rajasthan Royals (RR). RR's newly-appointed Director of Cricket, Kumar Sangakkara, is happy with the buy.
Sangakkara is excited to have the likes of Morris who is useful with both bat and ball. RR want to have a very specific role with the all-rounder.
Kumar Sangakkara said, "We're also glad to get Chris Morris with us simply for what he brings to the side, both with the bat and ball. With the ball especially, his numbers across the IPLs are really good and his ability to finish games with the bat down the order is useful."
IPL 2021: "Unbelievably excited," says Chris Morris after becoming the costliest IPL player ever
"Yes the price was on the higher side, but we're looking for a very specific role with Chris and really happy to have someone like him in our squad," he added.
The former Sri Lankan captain also revealed that they targetted a few middle order batsmen including Shivam Dube. They managed to get the 27-year-old Mumbaikar for INR 4.4 crores.
Sangakkara said, "It was an exciting auction. From our point of view we were targeting certain players and we're happy to get our targets. We were looking at Shivam Dube for that middle-order spot in our batting line-up and finally got him."
"We're excited to have picked up some talented Indian youngsters, all of whom add different dimensions to our squad. As a team, we're delighted with the targets we were able to get and looking forward to working with the squad during the IPL now," the 43-year-old added.
(With inputs from ANI)