At Chennai Super Kings trials, Prashant Veer was told to focus on consistency. The youngster is now going to MS Dhoni’s gurukul. The left-arm spinner, who can also give a cricket ball a real tonk with the bat, will have a wonderful opportunity to grow.
At Rs 14.2 crore, Veer, son of a primary schoolteacher from Amethi, became the most expensive uncapped player in the history of the IPL. Kartik Sharma, who is called a ‘six-hitting machine’ back in native Rajasthan, later joined him at the top. But this story is about the boy from a village in Uttar Pradesh who dared to dream big ahead of the 2026 IPL auction. Maybe, from his time at the CSK trials he had a clue that something big was going to happen.
“We knew a lot of franchises would go for him (Veer), but initially, we didn’t expect it to go in the region of Rs 14 crore. But that’s how auctions work. You can’t predict the auction dynamics. We wanted him and we are very happy to get him,” said a franchise insider.
Rewind to Ravindra Jadeja’s career now. The late, great Shane Warne unearthed the rough diamond at Rajasthan Royals. Dhoni polished it at CSK. Jadeja left his beloved franchise as a legend and returned to his ‘roots’, Royals, in a close-season trade ahead of the auction. The five-time IPL champions smartly didn’t go for a like-for-like replacement, knowing that they won’t get one. They chose long-term.
Also read Kartik, Veer and Nabi hog the limelight in mini-IPL Auction
“Midway into the last season, we decided that we have to change,” Stephen Fleming, CSK head coach, said on the sidelines of the auction in Abu Dhabi on Tuesday. “The game has evolved and we were slow to react. We have to look into the future.”
Veer will learn on the job, from arguably the greatest mastermind white-ball cricket has seen. He was first spotted by the CSK scouts while playing for Noida Super Kings in the UP T20 League. He will learn on the job.
But Rs 14-crore is life-changing money for someone who comes from a pretty modest background. “At the end of the day, they (young uncapped players) should remember that they are here because of their skills,” Fleming offered his words of wisdom.
“Veer doesn’t come from an affluent family. His father is a primary schoolteacher. His grandfather is a retired LIC employee, whose pension covered the cost of Veer’s cricket journey so far,” U Sajid Umar, a member of the Uttar Pradesh Cricket Association, who has seen the young boy grow, told RevSportz. “He is a wonderfully talented cricketer, but this is just the beginning.”
From his base price of Rs 30 lakh to Rs 14.2 crore — jaw-dropping would be an understatement. Veer must stay rooted. He now has the privilege of sharing the dressing room with the likes of Dhoni, Fleming and Michael Hussey. If he stays focused, the august company would help him become a better cricketer and a well-rounded individual.
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