IPL 2021 Auction: Shah Rukh Khan sold to Punjab Kings for Rs 5.25 crore!
Chennai, Feb 18: Named after a Bollywood icon, drawing attention was no big deal for Tamil Nadu cricketer M Shahrukh Khan but what fetched him an IPL contract worth Rs 5.25 was purely his big-hitting prowess that he displayed during the recent Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy.
The 25-year old Tamil Nadu all-rounder had a base price of Rs 20 lakh but Punjab Kings very happily shelled out a huge sum to secure his services after a fierce bidding on Thursday.
He grabbed attention with some power-packed performances as a finisher for Tamil Nadu in the domestic T20 event which his team eventually won.
After his blistering 49 off 19 balls took TN past Himachal Pradesh in the quarterfinal from a tricky situation, his 7-ball 18 helped the team seal the title against Baroda.
He then attended trials with Rajasthan Royals, Kolkata Knight Riders and the Punjab franchise and it's clear he did make an impression.
"This year I had no expectations. To be frank I had nothing in my mind (about the auction). People were taking about the chances of me getting an IPL contract but I did not pay too much attention to it," he told PTI.
Shahrukh knows that IPL is a huge platform for any cricketer that helps in getting better
"The IPL is a very big stage for any cricketer. Here, you get to play against and alongside the big names in international cricket. There is a lot to learn by just interacting with them and watching them.
"It has been the springboard for many cricketers to move on and play for the country," the TN batsman, who admires New Zealand captain Kane Williamson for on his on-field style, said.
Named after the actor on the suggestion of his mother's cousin, a huge Shahrukh Khan fan, the right-hand batsman is seeking to create an identity of his own.
His prospects of bagging an IPL contract were played up a couple of years ago but that didn't happen and resulted in disappointment.
"I was disappointed, if I tell you I wasn't (disappointed) I would be lying," he said. "But overcame it well. Instead of brooding over it, I just thought about what next."
Shahrukh, who made his first-class debut in 2018 after having played for the state in List A and T20s in 2014, rose through the ranks. He was a star in school cricket in Chennai and featured in the competitive TNCA League aged 13.
"But the stepping up to the next level, playing for Tamil Nadu was a different challenge," he said.
After his efforts in the TNPL, he came back in the Tamil Nadu team and has made his mark as a finisher in the last two seasons.
He worked on the role as a finisher and that has brought results.
"I was aware that I had to keep working on my role. Being a finisher meant one has to keep improving skills because a batsman can get found out soon. I have worked on my skills and focussed on hitting areas. There are still areas to improve, am just aiming to improving each day," he added.
He also said his trainer Azhariah Prabhakar, with whom he has worked since the age of 15, had helped him get stronger, both physically and mentally.
"I will continue working with him and try to keep improving."
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Two injuries, one DNF, a DQ as India end messy World Relays campaign
Gaborone (Botswana) (PTI): Amoj Jacob and Ragul Kumar got injured during the men's 4x400m and 4x100 races respectively as India ended their World Athletics Relays campaign in disappointment on the second day of competitions here on Sunday.
The Indian camp had high hopes of making the 2027 World Championships in the men's 4x400m relay but the team did not finish (DNF) the race as Jacob suffered cramps and pulled out of the race after taking the baton from the first leg runner Dharamveer Choudhary. Rajesh Ramesh and Vishal TK were to run in the third and fourth legs.
Those teams which could not qualify for the 2027 Beijing World Championships by reaching the final round of each of the six relay events on Saturday were given another chance in the second qualification round on Sunday.
The top two teams in each of the two heats (in all six relay events) booked the Beijing ticket on Sunday.
India will now have to try and qualify for the World Championships through the Top Lists of the World Athletics, which is a long and tedious process.
In the men's 4x100m race, third leg runner Ragul Kumar fell down the track after failing to hand over the baton inside the exchange zone to fourth leg runner Gurindervir Singh, which clearly showed the lack of coordination among the runners.
Harsh Santosh Raut and Animesh Kujur ran the first two legs.
The Indian quartet was disqualified and Kumar was seen being taken away from the Field of Play with the help of the volunteers.
It was a comedy of errors in the case of the women's 4x100m race, which saw the baton being dropped during an exchange between first leg runner Tamanna and second runner Nithya Gandhe, though the Indians finished the race in 53.09 seconds.
Gandhe started running quite a distance, but after realising that the baton was not in her hand, she turned and ran back to pick it up.
The only silver-lining for the Indian contingent was the national record time in the mixed 4x100m relay race, though the quartet of Ragul Kumar, Nithya Gandhe, Animesh Kujur and Sneha SS finished sixth in heat number two with a time of 41.35 seconds, bettering the previous national mark of 42.30 seconds set in March in Chandigarh.
The mixed 4x400m relay quartet of Theerthesh P Shetty, Kumari Saloni, Nihal William and Rashdeep Kaur ended at fifth in heat number one with a time of 3 minutes and 19.40 seconds.
On Saturday, all the five Indian relay teams had failed to make it to the respective final rounds and thus missed out on the 2027 World Championships berths.
