Arjun Tendulkar was snapped up by the Mumbai Indians at the IPL 2022 mega-auction for INR 30 lakh, 10 lakh more than his base price. Arjun, son of the legendary India batsman and former Mumbai Indians captain Sachin Tendulkar, was with MI last season as well.
While in the last auction the all-rounder was easily purchased for his base price of 20 lakh, this time though the 5-time champions were taken aback when, after their first bid of 20 lakh, Gujarat Titans jumped in the race and bid 25 lakh for the bowling all-rounder.
Owner Akash Ambani had a wry smile on his face when the Titans raised the paddle for Arjun – he was almost imploring the Titans, one of the two new franchises, in a funny way that they should let MI have Arjun. Mumbai bid further for 30 lakh and Gujarat backed off letting them have the junior Tendulkar. There were some laughs shared between the Mumbai and Gujarat members in the auction room
Arjun then sent a video message, thanking the franchise for giving him this opportunity and promised to give his best.
In his video message, Arjun Tendulkar said: “I am so happy to be back at Mumbai Indians. I have always been a die-hard fan of this franchise since 2008. I would like to thank the owners and support staff for giving me this opportunity and showing trust in me. I can’t wait to go out there and give my best for the team.”
Relentless bowler and an Exciting talent. ?
Good to have you back, Arjun Tendulkar ?#OneFamily #MumbaiIndians #AalaRe #IPLAuction pic.twitter.com/JPKCRuI2XK
— Mumbai Indians (@mipaltan) February 14, 2022
Arjun Tendulkar didn’t get a chance to make it into the eleven last season for Mumbai Indians. He played two Syed Mushtaq Ali games last year for Mumbai, picking up 2 wickets and going at an expensive economy of 9.57.
A left-arm seam-bowling all-rounder, Arjun has also featured for the Marylebone Cricket Club Young Cricketers side in the Second Eleven Twenty20 tournament in Coggeshall, Essex.
The 22-year-old, who is yet to make his first-class debut, has also been included in Mumbai’s squad for the upcoming Ranji Trophy season; Mumbai will be captained by opener Prithvi Shaw and also include senior India Test batter Ajinkya Rahane.
The IPL 2022 is likely to commence in the last week of March, and according to reports will be held in the stadiums of Mumbai and Pune.
