I was absolutely shocked when Umesh Yadav went for Rs 1 crore: Gautam Gambhir

Gautam Gambhir, the former Indian cricketer, reckons that Umesh Yadav should have fetched much more than he eventually did in the auction for the 2021 Indian Premier League (IPL). The Indian speedster registered himself at a base price of INR 1 crore and Delhi Capitals (DC) picked him up at the same price in the auction.

Yadav was a part of the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB), who released him ahead of the auction. The pacer has experience of 121 matches in the IPL in which he has picked up 119 wickets at an economy rate of 8.51.

When Umesh Yadav is hot he can be very hot: Gautam Gambhir

Gambhir reckons that it’s tough to find a bowler, who can clock in the 140 kmph mark on a consistent basis. As per him, Umesh can be a tough nut to crack when in full flow. Gambhir was a tad bemused after no other team apart from DC showed interest in the fast bowler. He also reckons that Yadav is a valuable addition for Shreyas Iyer and Co.

“Umesh Yadav, I was absolutely shocked when he went for Rs 1 crore, there are not many fast bowlers who can bowl 135-140. Yes, he can be a little hot and cold, but when he is hot he can be very hot, but then not many teams went for him,” Gambhir was quoted as saying on Star Sports.

“It was a great buy for Delhi because Delhi wanted someone like Umesh Yadav with that kind of an experience because Ishant Sharma is not fit, they had to bowl someone like Tushar Deshpande, where there was not enough experience. Now they have got Umesh Yadav, so hopefully, he can do well for them,” he added.

In the 2020 IPL, played in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Yadav played only two matches. In those games, he conceded 83 runs from seven overs at an economy rate of 11.85.

In fact, he was the most expensive bowler for the Challengers in the tournament. As far as DC is concerned, they picked Tom Curran, Sam Billings, and Steve Smith, among other big names.