Bidding Rs 27 crore for Rishabh Pant would've ruined Delhi Capitals' auction: DC co-owner Parth Jindal

Rishabh Pant was going to be sold for a lower price to LSG before Delhi Capitals used their RTM. When LSG increased their bid to Rs 27 crore, DC backed out, letting the Indian star move to Lucknow.

Delhi Capitals' co-owner Parth Jindal on Tuesday said that if they would have tried to outbid the IPL record Rs 27 cr for Rishabh Pant, it would've completely ruined the team's auction.

Speaking to Revsportz in an interview, Jindal said,"After Dada, my favourite cricketer has been Rishabh Pant. In my heart, I am really emotional and sad; I lost my favourite cricketer. He will continue to remain my favourite but very happy with the auction."

"We lost Rishabh the minute we did not retain him. Let us not try and kid ourselves that we were ever going to get him back in the auction. If I did use Right to Match (RTM) at that price, I would have ruined the auction for Delhi Capitals (DC). Rishabh Pant at 18 crore and at 27 crore he is a completely different proposition," Jindal added.

Commenting on whether it was the decision of his co-owners that led to Pant leaving, Jindal said, "I don't think it is about ownership here. We were very aligned as an ownership group. It was a very collective decision that was taken. We had lot of discussions with Rishabh. There were things we expected of Rishabh that we did not get last season or in previous seasons. We gave him honest feedback on that."

"We both, JSW and GMR, Kiran (Grandhi) and I, we are one family, we are united. It was a decision that we took. We gave him feedback. The feedback was not taken as we expected it to be taken. He took an emotional call. He has also grown up in this franchise," he stated.

Speaking on the discussions of letting Pant go, he told Revsportz, "He was a young boy when he started. Delhi Daredevils gave him his first opportunity. What transpired is not what I want to get into. We had a long discussion. In the end, Rishabh decided he did not want to stay. Both Kiran and I made all efforts. He decided he wanted to go in a different direction."

On why they bid for Pant again in the auction, he said, "At the time, I told him 'Rishabh, it's okay, I will not go for you in the auction.' But my heart took over in the auction. I tried getting him back but then the price became too high. It was a joint decision we took."

In a post on X, Parth thanked Pant for his contribution to the team and hoed to be re-united someday.

"I am very sad to see you go and I am very emotional about it. You will always be in DC and I hope one day we can reunite. Thank you for everything Rishabh and remember that we will always love you - go well champ, the world is at your feet. Best wishes from all of us at @DelhiCapitals - other than when you play DC I will be cheering and hoping for the best for you!" Jindal said in his post.

Rishabh Pant was going to be sold for a lower price to LSG at the IPL 2025 auctions before Delhi Capitals used their RTM. When LSG increased their bid to Rs 27 cr, DC backed out, letting the Indian star move to Lucknow.