Huge revelation! ‘I was brutally honest’: How ‘unsold’ Mayank Agarwal convinced RCB to sign him | Cricket News
Indian cricketer Mayank Agarwal, who initially went unsold in the Indian Premier League (IPL) mega auction last year, was later signed by Royal Challengers Bangalore as a replacement for the injured Devdutt Padikkal and contributed to the team’s first IPL trophy win after 18 years of wait. Agarwal has now shared his experience of dealing with auction snobbery and his subsequent journey with RCB.Agarwal openly discussed his initial reaction to unsold items at the mega auction and his approach to improving his game.“I gave myself 6-8 hours after the auction. Yes, thoughts came; I wasn’t chosen, it could have been, it could have been, but I was brutally honest with myself: ‘yes, you are not chosen.’ There must be a few things you need to work on, and if it’s just a few things, why not work on that? Rather than relying on auction dynamics, I kept asking myself: What can I improve right now? I listed the points with my batting coach and started immediately,” Agarwal said on the RCB podcast.When the opportunity arose following Padikkal’s injury, Agarwal had to prove himself in a trial with head coach Andy Flower before getting a contract.“Andy was very simple: ‘It’s a selection match, it’s make or break.’ I loved that. I was put in a situation where I had to play, just like in a real game. I did well, the coaches were happy and they were thinking, “This guy is ready; we don’t need to spend time getting him ready for the game,’” the top-order hitter said.Agarwal’s performance in the tournament included a remarkable unbeaten 41 from 23 balls against Lucknow Super Giants in a chase of 228, where he formed a crucial 107-run partnership with stand-in captain Jitesh Sharma.In his four appearances for RCB, Agarwal has accumulated 95 runs with an improved strike rate of 148.43 compared to his previous IPL seasons.He played the same number of matches as for Sunrisers Hyderabad in 2024. For RCB, he scored 95 runs in four innings at a strike rate of 148.43. In the final against Punjab Kings, he scored 24 off 18 balls, including a six and two fours, helping RCB win their first IPL title.
