New Delhi, Dec 17 (IANS) Chennai Super Kings’ latest entrant Kartik Sharma said that he was overwhelmed by seeing the franchises entering into a bidding war at the recently concluded Indian Premier League (IPL) auction to rope him in and stated that he was ‘extremely excited’ to play with veteran MS Dhoni.

India’s Kartik and Prashant Veer became the joint-highest-priced uncapped players in IPL history as Chennai Super Kings invested heavily in young talent. CSK paid an astonishing Rs 14.20 crore each for both players, who started with a base price of Rs 30 lakh, highlighting the franchise’s strategic move towards nurturing emerging talent.

Speaking to JioStar, CSK’s new addition Kartik shared his thoughts on being roped in by the five-time champions, saying, “First of all, a special thank you to all my family members & friends, without their support, I don’t think I would have reached this stage. My entire family is very happy, everyone is celebrating and dancing.”

“I’m extremely excited to play alongside Mahendra Singh Dhoni and learn from him. When the bidding started, I was scared I might miss out. But as the bid kept going up, I started crying. Even after it ended, I couldn’t stop. I was overwhelmed with emotion and happiness, I honestly don’t know how to put it into words,” he added.

Kartik, recognised for his aggressive middle-order batting and reliable wicketkeeping, has scored 334 runs in 12 T20 matches at a strike rate of 164, smashing 28 sixes, and was among the top six-hitters in the Ranji Trophy.

In domestic white-ball cricket, Kartik has built a reputation for his powerful lower-order hitting. In the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy league stage, he scored 133 runs in five games with a strike rate of over 160. Over his brief 12-match T20 career, he has consistently maintained a strike rate above 160.

Having trained with the CSK squad last season, Kartik has earned praise across the domestic circuit for his ability to excel against both spin and pace.

–IANS

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