'Never thought I'd get crores' - Shubham Dubey recalls 'really bad times' after INR 5.8 crore IPL deal

The highly-anticipated Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 auction took place on Tuesday, December 19, in Dubai. The uncapped Indian players were in high demand at the auction as a lot of them were roped in by the franchises for hefty amounts of money.

Shubham Dubey was one of the many uncapped Indian players who had a big payday in store for them on IPL auction day. The services of the Yavatmal-born was acquired by the Rajasthan Royals for a sum of INR 5.8 crore. An ecstatic Dubey said that he was hopeful of getting a team at the auction after his Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2023 performances, but never expected to bag such a lucrative contract.

“In T20 Syed Mushtaq Ali, I did well so I was hoping that I would be picked but itna bada amount aayega (this much money)…! I never thought that I would get crores. Now my responsibility has increased,” Dubey was quoted as saying by The Indian Express.

The left-handed batter from Nagpur got into the Vidarbha team a couple of seasons ago. He amassed 221 runs in seven innings at an average of 73.67 and a strike rate of 187.29 this year in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2023. In a game against Bengal, in Mohali, Dubey scored an unbeaten 58 off 20 balls, hitting three fours and six sixes. His whirlwind knock helped Vidarbha chase down a target of 213 with seven wickets and 13 balls to spare.

My father is without a job for a while now, and we went through really bad times: Shubham Dubey

Dubey comes from a very humble background. His father, who used to own a paan shop, is currently unemployed. It seems that the windfall at the IPL auction couldn't have been timed better for the Dubey family.

“My father is without a job for a while now, and we went through really bad times. My father did some work here and there," the 29-year-old stated.

Dubey didn't forget to show his gratitude to former coach Sujit Jaiswal, who passed away during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Yavatmal-born, who didn't have the money to buy new gloves a few years ago, credited Jaiswal for allowing him to represent his team, Advocate XI Club.

"I used to play for Advocate XI Club here and there used to be a coach named Sujit Jaiswal, who passed away during Covid. I didn’t even have money to even buy new gloves, it was him who gave me everything and made me play for his club. Today everything came in a flashback when I saw RR buying me,” he recalled.

The power makes him the X-factor and he is the game changer of the team: Former Vidarbha coach Pritam Gandhe

Former Vidarbha coach Pritam Gandhe was all praise for Dubey. The 52-year-old mentioned that Dubey's big-hitting ability sets him apart and also spoke about his ability to handle pressure and finish matches.

“He is a talented cricketer, if anything lands in his radar, he has the capacity to slam the ball outside the ground. The power makes him the X-factor and he is the game changer of the team. He can handle the pressure and he can challenge anyone on his day. He is the perfect finisher of our team,” Gandhe said.

Director of High Performance for the Royals, Zubin Bharucha, spoke highly about their new recruit in a video released by the franchise on social media.

“He has been unbelievable in his sort of journey. His journey has been almost as tough and tedious as Jaiswal’s (Yashasvi) journey. He couldn’t afford to buy his own bat this year. Just think that is an example of what these players go through some of them where they need to get to. But he has been able to push his game one step after another step slow and steadily, upto domestic level,” Bharucha said.