Kapil Dev would have been bought for 25 crores at IPL auction, reckons Sunil Gavaskar

Sunil Gavaskar has estimated a sensational figure of 25 crores in IPL for Kapil Dev, pointing at the sheer all-round capabilities that India's first World Cup-winning captain possessed. Gavaskar and Dev were both part of the World Cup squad of 1983, which is considered the golden era of Indian cricket.

Though Kapil Dev was quick to brush aside the comment by laughing and saying he could never imagine such huge amount of money, Gavaskar further stated that Kapil Dev was the best because of his capability to make the bat and the ball talk. Gavaskar also praised Kapil Dev for his memorable innings of an unbeaten 175 in the World Cup against Zimbabwe.

"That 175 is the greatest knock in ODI history I have seen as a player and as a commentator... I have never seen a better inning. The situation we were in...We were 17 for 5. It was cold and the ball was moving. It looked like we would be bowled out for 70 or 80...

"Kapil did not play any lofted drives till he reached 80. It was amazing to see him those sixes. He would have gone for Rs 25 crore in the IPL today," Gavaskar said at Agenda AajTak.

As per the rules of the Indian Premier League, each franchise would be allowed to pick only four foreign players in their starting eleven that has made allrounders in general and Indian allrounders, in particular, the most demanding candidates at the auctions where they fetch huge sums of money.