Jofra Archer, who will not play in IPL 2022, was bought for Rs 8 crs by MI.
The BCCI also told the franchises if they buy Archer in this auction, they will not get a replacement player in his absence. Yet Mumbai Indians and Rajasthan Royals engaged in a bidding war for the fast bowler, who were joined by Sunrisers Hyderabad as well.
Finally, MI’s deep pocket outbid Rajasthan and Archer will join the Rohit Sharma-led franchise and is expected to play from IPL 2023 onwards and owner Akash Ambani called it an investment.
Meanwhile, Kumar Sangakkara, director of cricket operations of Rajasthan Royals was caught on camera, cheekily trying to convince other franchise officials to bid for Archer in order to up the amount that Mumbai Indians had to pay.
Sunrisers Hyderabad did manage to give Mumbai one last tussle with their Rs 7.75 crore bid, but the latter raised the bar by a mark, and Archer was subsequently roped in by the five-time IPL winners. Mumbai will be unleashing a dream pace combination of Archer and Jasprit Bumrah in the 2023 season.