IPL Auction 2024: PBKS accidentally buy uncapped Shashank Singh; auctioneer denies reversal

New Delhi: The Punjab Kings (PBKS) made a significant blunder during the Indian Premier League 2024 auction by purchasing the 'wrong player'. By the time they realised the mistake the bid had already been completed and the auctioneer denied the reversal.

The focal point of this chaos was the uncapped Indian player, Shashank Singh, whom PBKS mistakenly bought at a base price of Rs 20 lakhs after the team seemingly mixed up the name of the player during the 2024 IPL auction held in Dubai on Tuesday.

During the accelerated round, the auctioneer Mallika Sagar announced and called out the name of 32-year-old Shashank, who represents Chhattisgarh in domestic cricket. Shashank has played 55 T20 games, amassing 724 runs at a strike rate of 135.83 while taking 15 wickets.

The uncapped batting all-rounder, who remained unsold in the previous year's auction after being released by Sunrisers Hyderabad, found a team for the upcoming 2024 IPL season as Punjab Kings emerged as the sole bidder for him.

PBKS co-owner Preity Zinta raised the paddle after a brief discussion with the rest of her team members when Shashank's name appeared. Mallika followed the routine procedure and brought down her hammer to seal Shashank's sale to the franchise with her hammer.

When the auctioneer Mallika moved to the next set of players, with Tanay Thyagarajan, being the first name up, PBKS realised their mistake and owners Preity as well as Ness Wadia informed her that they had mistaken Shashank for another player.

"Oh! You don't want the player?" asked Mallika. "We are talking about Shashank Singh. But the hammer has come down. Player No. 236 and 237 both went to you, I think." Wadia and Preity were eager to re-enter him into the auction, yet auction regulations prevent such action once the hammer confirms a purchase, solidifying the transaction.

The franchise issued a clarification on Wednesday after the confusion related to Shashank Singh's bidding. ”Media have reported on Shashank Singh being bought erroneously by the Punjab Kings. The Kings would like to clarify that the player was always on our target list.”

“The confusion was due to 2 players of the same name being on the list. We are delighted to have him on board and see him contribute to our success,” it said in an official statement.