New Zealand allrounder Daryl Mitchell was busy wrapping gifts for his daughter’s birthday when his name popped up at the IPL 2024 auction in Dubai earlier this week.
Delhi Capitals raised the paddle first and Punjab Kings made a counter-offer resulting in an intense contest between the two franchises to land Mitchell.
In a few moments, Mitchell’s price zoomed to 12 crore when Chennai Super Kings entered the fray, from his base price of Rs 1 crore.
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And it was CSK that ultimately had the final say with a winning bid of Rs 14 crore making Mitchell the second costliest Kiwi buy at an IPL auction alongside Kane Williamson.
“It was obviously a pretty special night for us as a family, sitting here with my wife watching the whole auction,” Mitchell was quoted as saying in media reports.
“To see your name come up and then to go through that whole experience is definitely something that will stick with us for the rest of our lives,” he added.
Mitchell has played in IPL before for Rajasthan Royals after being picked at his base price of Rs 75 lakh for the 2022 season. However, his appearances were limited to just two matches.
“(Elder daughter) Addie’s birthday today (Wednesday), so there was a bit of wrapping up presents and stuff like that while the auction was going on. At the auction, you don’t quite know exactly when you’re going to come up in the list,” the 32-year-old said.
“So yeah, I guess we were just trying to keep ourselves busy and watching it, and then, when it popped up, I guess you end up being glued to the screen to see what happens,” he added.
Mitchell has also had to live through the disappointment of going unsold in the past. However, after a memorable show for New Zealand at the recent 2023 ODI World Cup in India, his stocks skyrocketed.
“Your heart starts to pump a little bit, as you see the paddles going up. But having been through the auction before and going unsold, it was a pretty special night last night to experience that,” he said.
Mitchell says the sum will help him set up his family.
“It’s my oldest daughter’s fifth birthday today (Wednesday), so I got her a pretty good present waking up. Not that she understands what’s going on, but … it will help us set up the family in many ways,” he said.
“So they (the two daughters) can grow up and enjoy the things they love, and for me, that’s the really cool thing about it, and they are the reason why you do all this,” he added.
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