After a relatively quiet few hours on the second day of the Indian Premier League 2022 mega auction, five-time winners Mumbai Indians got into their own and made two major signings at the keenly followed bidding war in Bangalore.
MI made winning bids for England pacer Jofra Archer and Singapore-born middle-order batter Tim David after an intense tussle with opposing franchises for the two cricketers. While they bagged Archer’s services for a sum of INR 8 crores, the franchise got David in their camp for INR 8.25 crores.
The highly intense bidding war for Archer was the most interesting aspect of the second day in IPL 2022 mega auction since the player’s participation is unlikely for this year’s edition in April and May. Archer, England’s premier white-ball quick, has been under rehab for an elbow issue, which required him to go through surgery last year.
The problem was first identified in March 2021 when Archer came to India for England’s all-format trip. Since then, he has gone through two different surgeries on his elbow and has been under the consistent watch of the England and Wales Cricket Board’s medical team.
As per ECB’s latest update on Archer, he will not be available to take park until June this year, which makes MI’s bid for him a futuristic punt, as his pairing alongside fellow ace quick Jasprit Bumrah promises to be an impactful one for the Rohit Sharma-led side.
MI’s owner Aakash Ambani confirmed that they have made the Archer bid with an honest intention of bolstering their attack for the best part of the new three-year cycle, with a clear knowledge that he won’t be available immediately for the 2022 edition of the tournament.
For the upcoming season, David strengthens MI’s already rich batting unit as he joins forces with the likes of Rohit, Kieron Pollard, Suryakumar Yadav and Ishan Kishan. The Singapore-born middle-order batter has risen up the ranks over the last few years through stints in various leagues around the world.
David was also brought in as a replacement pick by Royal Challengers Bangalore for the UAE leg of IPL 2021 before being released. The 25-year-old has played a total of 85 T20 games and made nearly 2,000 runs at a strike-rate of 159.39.
