IPL 2024 Auction: Punjab Kings erroneously buys 'Shashank Singh'

The Punjab Kings' franchise co-owners mistakenly raised the paddle for the uncapped India all-rounder Shashank Singh and then asked the auctioneer Mallika Sagar to reverse it in the recently held mini auction for IPL 2024. However, the auctioneer refused as the player had already been sold to the team.

Dubai:The Punjab Kings franchise created a big gaucherie in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 auction as they bought the 'wrong player' when they mistakenly raised the paddle for Indian all-rounder Shashank Singh on Tuesday.

The incident happened during the accelerated auction, when co-owner of the Punjab Kings franchise, Ness Wadia raised the paddle for the former Sunrisers Hyderabad(SRH) player Shashank Singh at his base price, and auctioneer Mallika Sagar sold the all-rounder to the team as a result. However, Wadia then asked the auctioneer to reverse the bid but Mallika refused as she had already brought down the hammer.

When the auctioneer Mallika moved to the next set of players, with Tanay Thyagrajan, being the first name up, PBKS realised their mistake and owners Ness Wadia and Zinta 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"

The 32-year-old was picked by SRH in 2022, where he played 10 games and scored 69 runs at an average of 17.25 with a strike rate of 146.81. He had even bowled two overs in the IPL but was unable to pick any wicket.

The right-handed batter came into the limelight when he became the first Indian to hit 150+ runs and claim a five-wicket haul in a List-A match recently. He smashed 152 off 113 balls including 12 boundaries and seven sixes and then picked a five-wicket haul against Manipur in the Vijay Hazare Trophy on November 29.