“Absolutely pumped to be back with Kolkata”: Pat Cummins pumped to rejoin KKR for IPL 2022 despite salary cut

Pat Cummins pumped to rejoin KKR: The Australian Test captain has been bought by Kolkata Knight Riders for the third time.

Australia Test captain Pat Cummins has rejoined Kolkata Knight Riders for the 15th season of the Indian Premier League. Cummins, who had earned a record-breaking INR 15.5 crore in IPL 2020 auction, has received more than 50% salary cut though.

Cummins’ name immediately attracted interest from Kolkata and Gujarat Titans. A fierce battle between both the teams witnessed a steep rise in his price.

It was at INR 5.75 crore that Gujarat opted out of the race. However, Lucknow Super Giants soon expressed their interest in Cummins. KKR, who appeared to be hell-bent on buying Cummins, were resilient enough to buy him for INR 7.25 crore.

Readers must note that Cummins had made his IPL debut for Knight Riders in IPL 2014. Hence, this is the third time when Knight Riders have bid for Cummins.

In 25 IPL matches for KKR across four seasons, Cummins has picked 23 wickets at an average of 33.57, an economy rate of 8.32 and a strike rate of 24.22.

Not able to hide his excitement at being bought by KKR, Cummins released a video revealing him being pumped after rejoining the franchise. In the 18-second video, the 28-year old player thanked the owners for showing belief in him at the auction table.

Pat Cummins pumped to rejoin KKR for IPL 2022

Other than Cummins, Knight Riders spent a whopping amount of INR 12.25 crore to buy India batter Shreyas Iyer. It is noteworthy that one out of Cummins or Iyer could also lead the franchise in IPL 2022 after they released former captains Eoin Morgan and Dinesh Karthik last year.

Acquiring the crucial services of two cricketers from the marquee set, Kolkata have commenced their IPL auction 2022 campaign on a winning note.