In the IPL 2022 auction last week, the Lucknow Super Giants got the services of talented Indian pacer Avesh Khan for a fee of Rs. ten crores. Avesh's base price was set at Rs. 20 lakhs and he went on to become Indian Premier League's most expensive uncapped player.

Lucknow successfully bid for Avesh by keeping the likes of Chennai Super Kings, Mumbai Indians, and Sunrisers Hyderabad away and outbidding them.

After the two-day auction in Bengaluru, former Indian cricketer Gautam Gambhir, who is the Super Giants' mentor for the IPL 2022 season, said that Avesh is a one-of-a-kind player, and Lucknow can create a franchise around him in the future.

“We did go for Prasidh Krishna till INR 9.5 crore. He was always in the scheme of things. But we couldn't have got any further. When we couldn't get Prasidh, Avesh was the last in that rank who could bowl quick, so we had to go harder for him,” Gambhir said on Xtra Time.

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“I know some people say that we overpaid certain players but in Avesh's case, he's young and can bowl quick. He's someone you can build the Indian bowling with, and build the bowling department for the future. While people only talk about the present, we thought about the future as well. How many people who are that young can bowl 145 and can also bowl at different stages of the game?”

Gambhir went on to say that if he had been captain of the Lucknow franchise, he would have been satisfied with the bowling options he provides.

“Imagine if Holder and Wood bowl alongside him and you put in Stoinis, it would give you a good balance. If I was captain, it would've made me very happy. Avesh is someone we thought we could build the franchise with, alongside Ravi Bishnoi,” said Gambhir.