Afghanistan’s Zahir Khan, who was picked up by Rajasthan Royals for INR 60 Lakhs in the bidding process during IPL Player Auctions, will play under current Australia skipper, Steve Smith in the 2018 VIVO IPL, the franchise announced on their website.
Smith had been part of the Rajasthan Royals set-up in 2014 and 2015, before the franchise was suspended for the editions of 2016 & 2017.
Set at a base price of INR 20 Lakhs, Rajasthan Royals and Mumbai Indians were part of the bidding for the player and Mumbai Indian eventually backed out for Rajasthan to win the auction for 3 times the base price for the young Afghan spinner. Zahir will also get to share dressing room space with the legend himself, Australia’s Shane Warne, who was announced as the mentor for the side for the 2018 edition of IPL.
Zahir Khan has been an integral part of Afghanistan’s I-Cup squad in the past couple of years and has recently formed a formidable partnership with Rashid Khan in red-ball cricket for Afghanistan.
