IPL 2018 Auctions: Virender Sehwag's nephew makes it to Kings XI Punjab roster

Team Kings XI Punjab had a happy hunting time in the IPL 2018 auctions. Preity Zinta, one of the owners of the franchise, looked like willing to buy all the players at one time. She wanted to big for every player that came up on the screen. One member who was key to the KXIP’s choices was former Indian cricketer Virender Sehwag. Sehwag is the Director of Cricketing Operations in the Kings XI Punjab camp.

On the first day of the auctions, the KXIP side bagged the services of five players on a trot. They were on a shopping spree. On the second day, they seemed to be a lot wiser in their picks. They had some serious cheat deals as well. Hard hitting West Indies batsman Chris Gayle is a big name in T20 cricket. He is renowned as the best player in the shortest format of the game if one goes by the numbers he has in the format.

He went unsold on the first day of the auctions. But the Kings XI Punjab managed to bag him for his base price on the second day. Another player who managed to scrape through to the KXIP roster was young Delhi batsman Mayank Dagar. Interestingly, Mayank Dagar shares a close relation with Virender Sehwag. Dagar is the son of Sehwag’s first cousin. In other words, Mayank is Virender Sehwag’s nephew.

The numbers game

KXIP bagged Dagar for his base price of INR 20 Lakh. Commenting on the First Class numbers, Dagar has played 11 matches thus far and has 176 runs to his name for the Himachal Pradesh side. He has averaged just 16 with the bat. But his primary skill in the came is his bowling. In those 11 fixtures, he has bagged 30 wickets with a five wicket haul as well.

Albeit his economy is quite impressive, his average is on the higher side. In T20s, he has played 13 matches for his 12 scalps. Dagar’s moment of fame had come in the ICC U19 World Cup 2016 when he had performed decently for the India U19 side that had finished the tournament as the finalists.

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