Daryl Mitchell was bought by CSK for INR 14 Cr in IPL 2024 auction.
New Zealand all-rounder Daryl Mitchell has opened up about his emotions and excitement after the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) brought him for INR 14 crore at the IPL 2024 auction in Dubai.
Mitchell admitted that his heartbeat was increasing with the paddles going up at the auction. The Black Caps all-rounder is now excited to play under CSK coach Stephen Fleming and share a dressing room with Devon Conway and Rachin Ravindra in the upcoming IPL 2024.
Daryl Mitchell was quoted as saying by ESPNCricinfo: “Yeah, your heart starts to pump a little bit as you see the paddles going up. And yeah, having been through an auction before and going unsold, it was a special night last night to experience that, and now to obviously be part of the Chennai Super Kings is an exciting time.”
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He added, “[Elder daughter] Addie's birthday today, so there was a bit of wrapping up presents and stuff like that while the auction was going on. At the auction, you don't quite know exactly when you're going to come up on the list. So yeah, I guess we were just trying to keep ourselves busy and watching it, and then, when it popped up, I guess you end up being glued to the screen to see what happens.”
Speaking about how he got calls from CSK, the star all-rounder said: “As soon as it's all done, your phone goes off pretty quickly, and Chennai get in touch with you, speak with the manager and Flem [head coach Stephen Fleming], in contact with them to get a few things sorted and becoming part of the Chennai Super Kings team.”
Mitchell, an established member of the New Zealand national team across formats after 20 Tests, 39 ODIs, and 56 T20Is, was a part of Rajasthan Royals, in 2022, but go into the first XI only twice.
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Mitchell added, “It all happens pretty quickly. At the moment, I guess I am still pinching myself [because of] how lucky and grateful I am for this opportunity and looking forward to getting stuck into it in a few months' time.”
Sharing excitement to play under Fleming and his New Zealand teammates in the IPL 2024, he said: “Really excited to play under Flem, he is obviously a great of the game in our country as a player and now as a coach as well. To learn from him, he's obviously had a lot of success, and I am looking forward to that experience.”
Mitchell signed off by saying, “I grew up with Mitch since we were about 12 years old. And now, with Dev and Rachin in the team as well, it's going to be good fun. And again, a lot of the Indian players - the cool thing about the IPL is that you get to rub shoulders with some world-class players, so really looking forward to that.”
(With ESPNCricinfo Inputs)