Mike Hesson reveals why RCB did not bid for Chahal in the mega auction

Mike Hesson, former Director of Cricket at Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB), has revealed that RCB had planned to buy Yuzvendra Chahal back at the mega auction ahead of the 2022 season, but the franchise’s plans were dashed by the auction dynamics. 

Chahal, who Hesson described as one of the ‘top 5 RCB players of all time’, was surprisingly not retained ahead of IPL 2022 despite the leg-spinner enjoying a prolific campaign in 2021, where he finished as the second-highest wicket-taker for RCB with 18 wickets at an economy of 7.05. 

Ahead of the mega auction before the 2022 season, teams were allowed four retentions but RCB chose to retain only three players — Virat Kohli (15 crore), Glenn Maxwell (11 crore) and Mohammed Siraj (7 crore).

With Chahal not retained, many expected RCB to re-secure the services of the leg-spinner at the auction table but the Reds ended up not placing a single bid for the veteran bowler. Chahal eventually ended up at Rajasthan Royals after being bought for INR 6.50 crore. 

Hesson, speaking in the ‘Unwind With Cricket.com’ show, revealed what went wrong, and why RCB were unable to bring Chahal back to Bangalore.

“We only retained three players because we wanted to buy back both Harshal Patel and Yuzi at the auction. By only retaining three players, it gave us an extra four crore to do that,” Hesson said, speaking on the show.

“Probably the thing that I’m frustrated about even now is the fact that he couldn’t make the top two marquee lists despite being one of the best ever in the IPL. That was ridiculous. And the fact that he came in at No.65 in the auction list (sic) meant that it was really difficult for us to guarantee that we will get him. 

“That was something we spent a huge time on at the mock auctions. Harshal was in the first three sets but Yuzi was way down there (set six). We knew through all our mocks that we could get bullied later on (in the auction). 

“If we saved all our cash and waited for set six, we knew there were five other teams that had more money than us. Suppose we’d let go of all the bowlers before that and still failed to get Yuzi, we would have then been left without a leg-spinner.

“But yes, we spent hours and hours at the mock auction debating how we could potentially buy Yuzi.” 

RCB eventually ended up with Wanindu Hasaranga, who came three sets and roughly 25 spots above Chahal in the auction.

“We felt that we needed to have a decent dip at Hasaranga. Obviously the fact that he was a three-dimensional player played a big part in the same. We felt that if we weren’t gonna get Yuzi, Hasaranga would be a really good option for us,” Hesson said.

“We were delighted to secure the services of Hasaranga but we knew it would have a flow-on effect. 

Last year, in a chat with Ranveer Allahbadia on the ‘Beer Biceps’ YouTube channel, Chahal had claimed that he ‘did not receive any phone call’ from any RCB staff post the auction. 

“No one even spoke to me. I think I played around 114 games for them. I couldn't understand what happened suddenly,” Chahal had said in that interview.

However, Hesson revealed that he personally called Chahal post the IPL 2022 auction.

“Yuzi was communicated with a huge amount. And I know that because I was the guy at the other end of the phone,” Hesson said.

“I remember ringing Yuzi afterwards and he was upset. It was very difficult to try and explain to him the auction dynamics at that time. He was visibly disinterested, and I don’t blame him. He was an RCBian and he was frustrated. But I can assure everyone that he is well-aware of the issues we were confronted with.”

‘Wanted to get Tilak Varma at RCB but he slipped away’

Speaking in the same show, Hesson revealed that Tilak Varma was on RCB’s radar, but the franchise eventually took the decision to not sign the youngster at the mega auction. 

Four teams bid for Tilak at the 2022 mega auction, but RCB were not among the four. The left-hander eventually was snapped up by Mumbai Indians for INR 1.70 crore.

“I think Tilak Varma was one player that slipped away. He was on our scouting list. We went for Rajat Patidar at that time. We needed to make a decision on who we were going for,” Hesson said.

“It would have been nice to have another left-hander in the top-order. There was a lot of talk that he was susceptible to the short ball domestically. But certainly since he’s come to the IPL, he’s made every post a winner. 

“I think he is one that I wish that we pushed a little bit harder for. All good in hindsight but he’s proven that he is a high-quality player. Being a left-hander would always be helpful for that RCB top-order.”

‘I would have never bid for Pat Cummins for 20.25 crore’

Speaking on RCB’s IPL 2024 auction strategy, Hesson claimed that the Reds ‘showed their hands a bit too much’ by bidding up to INR 20.25 crore for Pat Cummins. The Australian Test and ODI captain eventually got bagged by Sunrisers Hyderabad for 20.50 crore.

The former RCB Director of Cricket also opined that RCB weakened their position at the auction by signing Cameron Green from Mumbai Indians for INR 17.50 crore in an all-cash trade deal.

“I never would have bid for Pat Cummins to that level (INR 20.25 crore). Never,” Hesson said. 

“You basically show your hand that that’s as far as you can go. So you have another two or three teams that know that ‘that’s all that RCB have’. The other teams will then forego a lot of other options to save more than 23 crore in order to outbid RCB.

“So I think RCB showed their hands probably too much with the Pat Cummins move. But I can understand why they did it. Because they didn’t want to end up with nobody. That’s the issue when you buy Cameron Green for 17 crore - you don’t go into the auction in a position of strength. Because you don’t have the same money as the other teams.

“We’ve been in auctions where we have bullied other teams. We were able to get ourselves into that position through releasing players. But I thought after the retention list, RCB were in a really strong position. And then they spent 17 crore on Cam Green.

“Cam Green is a fine player, but his buy made a huge difference to their auction strategy.”