'My retention wasn't about money for sure': Pant reveals ahead of IPL auction

New Delhi, Nov 19 (IANS) India wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant has revealed that his release from Delhi Capitals squad ahead of the IPL 2025 mega auction was not about the money.

In a first public reaction after not being retained by the franchise which he captained across three seasons after missing the 2023 edition due to injury, Pant countered Sunil Gavaskar's opinion where he suggested the move was made due to the disagreement on the retention fees and Delhi would want his back in the squad.

"My retention wasn’t about the money for sure that I can say," Pant wrote on X (formerly known as Twitter).

Talking about Delhi's auction strategy on Star Sports, Gavaskar said, "See the auction dynamics are completely different so we don't know how it will go but what I feel is that Delhi would certainly want Rishabh Pant back in their squad. Sometimes when the player has to be retained there's talk between franchises and players about the fees that are expected. As some of those who have been retained by their franchise they've gone for more than say what the number one retention fee would be.

"So clearly may be I think there was some disagreement over that but my feeling is Delhi definitely want Rishabh Pant back because they need a captain as well. If Rishabh Pant is not in their squad then they have to look for a new captain."

Delhi Capitals have two Right to Match (RTM) cards, which they can use on the auction table for Pant or any other previous squad member after only retaining Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Tristan Stubbs and Abhishek Porel.

Earlier, Pant casted doubts over his retention by the franchise and posted a cryptic post on social media. He wrote, "If go to the auction. Will I be sold or not and for how much?"

The left-handed attacking batter made his return to competitive cricket earlier this year in IPL 2024 after the horrific car crash that ruled him out of the entire 2023 season. He went on to win the ICC T20 World Cup with Rohit Sharma-led side before returning to ODI and Test squads.

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