Prithvi Shaw went unsold in the recently held IPL mega auction.
Rishabh Pant (Rs 27 Crore to LSG), Shreyas Iyer (Rs 26.75 Crore to PBKS) and Venkatesh Iyer (Rs 23.75 Crore to KKR) were the three most expensive buys, while the 13-year-old Vaibhav Suryavanshi secured a deal with the Rajasthan Royals for Rs 1.10 Crore.
Amidst all this, Prithvi Shaw going unsold at the grand auction became the talk of the town. Shaw was part of the Delhi franchise since returning as the U-19 World Cup winning captain in 2018. The Mumbai batter was retained by DC for Rs 7.5 Crore ahead of the 2022 auction but he failed to justify the faith in the past few seasons.
Reacting to his auction snub, former Delhi Capitals coach Pravin Amre said Prithvi Shaw perhaps could not handle fame and money that he received from the IPL.
"Three years back, I gave him Vinod Kambli's example. I've seen Kambli's downfall from close quarters. It's not easy to teach certain things to this generation. Thanks to being retained by DC, Prithvi must have earned ₹30-40 crore by the time he was 23. Will even an IIM graduate get that type of money? When you earn so much at such a young age, you tend to lose focus. It's important that you know how to manage money, have good friends and prioritise cricket," Amre told TOI in an exclusive chat.
Shaw amassed just 198 runs in the IPL 2024 season from 8 matches and was eventually released by DC ahead of the auction. During the event in Jeddah, he failed to attract any franchise and wasn't brought back for the accelerated auction process.
Amre expressed his disappointment on seeing a talent like Shaw go to waste. "It's so disappointing to see that a talent like him is going in reverse direction. Someone told me that before he left for Mumbai for the Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 Trophy, Prithvi cracked a superb century in a practice match at the Cricket Club of India.”
"Even today, he can hit a 30-ball fifty in the IPL. Maybe he couldn't handle the glamour and money, the side-effects of the IPL. His example can be a case study in Indian cricket. What's happening to him shouldn't happen to other cricketers. Talent alone can't take you to the top. The three Ds - discipline, determination and dedication - are important," Amre added.
Prithvi Shaw announced his arrival to international cricket with a century on Test debut. However, he struggled to maintain his form and also went downhill fitness-wise.
As a result, the 25-year-old fell behind in the packing order and he is currently not in the reckoning for India selection. The last time he played for the country was in July 2021.
Like many others, Amre also confirmed that indiscipline was indeed a factor behind Shaw's downfall. But he hoped that the cricketer learns from this and emerges stronger.
"When DD bought him, he had just captained the India U-19 team to the World Cup title. Delhi was the first IPL team to really back his talent. At that time, ₹1.2 crore was a big amount. Next year, he performed well in the first game itself, smashing 99 off just 55 balls against KKR. From that match onwards, Delhi kept faith in him. However, even after backing him for six years, the DC management was left hurt. It was his indiscipline which hampered Prithvi's performance. That hunger to come back and do well was missing," Amre said.
"I was there in the management when we backed him, but I was also in the decision-making group which dropped him due to indiscipline. It wasn't about punishment, we wanted him to come on the right path. I hope he takes this IPL auction snub positively. It's an eye-opener for him. He's still got age on his side. He's just 25," he further remarked.