The Punjab Kings say “confusion” around their bizarre moment of mistaken identity with Shashank Singh during the IPL auction was because two players had the same name, clarifying that Shashank was “always on our target list.”
During the accelerated round, Punjab appeared to accidentally bid for Shashank. His name was called out for a base price of 20 Lakhs before Punjab raised its paddle.
But when the hammer went down and the next player was set to be announced, Punjab co-owners Ness Wadia and Preity Zint seemed to be discussing that they’d made a mistake and wanted to withdrawal their bid.
Auctioneer Mallika Sagar however stood her ground and said they had to keep Shashank under auction rules.
“The hammer has come down now,” Sagar told Zinta and Wadia.
The franchise cleared up the matter by releasing an official statement on Wednesday night (all times AEDT).
“Punjab Kings would like to clarify that Shashank Singh was always on our target list. The confusion was due to two players of the same name being on the list. We are delighted to have him onboard and see him contribute to our success,” the statement read.
If any team completes a bid, under auction rules they are required take that player and can’t withdrawal it once the hammer has gone down.
Shashank, a 32-year old who plays for Chattisgarh in domestic cricket, went unsold last year in the auction after being released by Sunrisers Hyderabad.
There was however two Shashank Singhs in the auction shortlist.
The other is a 20-year old uncapped batsman from Bengal with no previous IPL experience, while Punjab went on a spending spree during the accelerated round in a bid to fill up its spots.
As to be expected, the blunder prompted some reaction from the cricket world.
“We don’t see that in the auction if you are clear with your plans,” commentator Suhail Chandok said on Jio Cinema.
Former New Zealand national coach Mike Hesson, who was appearing as an expert on the program, added of Punjab: “Not sure what Punjab achieved from this IPL auction. They have a lot of backups but not a lot of substance.”
