Former Indian wicket-keeper, Parthiv Patel has high praise for the former Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) skipper, Virat Kohli for taking a pay cut, saying the call would have been taken by Virat keeping in mind the larger interest of the franchise ahead of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2022 mega auction.
Virat Kohli, who was retained for INR 17 crores ahead of the last mega auction, was RCB’s first pick in their retention list as they also retained Glenn Maxwell for 11 crores, while Mohammed Siraj for INR 7 crores. RCB spent a total sum of INR 33 crores and they are left with INR 57 crores purse for the mega auction. However, the fans were surprised that the leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal or Purple Cap Holder of IPL 2021, Harshal Patel wasn’t retained.
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During a chat on Star Sports, Parthiv Patel said, “I think he has taken a pay cut in the larger interest of the team. If he had taken Rs 17 crore, those Rs 2 crore would have been cut from their kitty. The larger interest of the team, he has taken that call and it’s the right call as well. We all know how good a player Virat Kohli is. It’s the right decision from him.”
Meanwhile, Virat Kohli said he had no second thoughts when RCB management contacted him for retention. He had earlier resigned as the captain of the franchises after IPL 2021 wherein the former finalists reached the play-offs. He promised that he would continue playing for RCB until the time he retires from competitive cricket.
Describing the same, Virat Kohli said, “When I was contacted I didn’t have any second thoughts at all. I believe the best is yet to come, I have a good feeling about what’s to come from the next season onwards. Committed as an RCBian, we could not be more thankful. I’ll be there with my heart and soul for RCB as always.”
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2 new teams, Ahmedabad and Lucknow, will be coming into the fore during IPL 2022 and they will be allowed to pick 3 players each from the list of players who have not been retained. The window for the two new teams to do so is from December 1 to 25.
