Pant Denies Gavaskar's Claim, Says He Left DC Over Retention Fee, Not Disagreement

Rishabh Pant on Tuesday rejected the assessment of the legendary Sunil Gavaskar that the India wicketkeeper-batter left Delhi Capitals due to disagreement over his retention fee ahead of the mega auction of the Indian Premier League.

Pant, who captained Delhi Capitals last season after a comeback from a horrific car accident, is one of the marquee players who are not retained by their franchises. He is likely to be one of the most keenly sought-after players when the auction takes place in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia on November 24 and 25.

"My retention wasn't about the money for sure that I can say," Pant wrote on X, reacting to a broadcaster video showing Gavaskar speaking on the auction dynamics.

Gavaskar said while he expects Delhi Capitals to rope in Pant once again, he also wondered if there was a disagreement over the fee between the franchise and the player.

"The auction dynamics are completely different; we don't really know how it will go. But what I feel is that Delhi would certainly want Rishabh Pant back in the squad," Gavaskar told Star Sports.

"Sometimes, when a player is to be retained, there is talk between the franchise and the player and franchise about the fees that are expected."

"As you can see, some of the players who have been retained by the franchise, they've gone for more than say, what the No 1 retention fee deduction would be. Clearly I think, maybe there was some disagreement over there," he said.
Gavaskar said Delhi Capitals will have to look for a new captain as well if Pant is not there in the roster.

""My feeling is that Delhi would definitely want Pant back because they need a captain as well. If Rishabh Pant is not in their squad then they have to look for a new captain. My feeling is (that) Delhi would definitely go for Rishabh Pant," he said.

Pant is included in a list of marquee Indian players with a base price of Rs 2 crore each, along with other ex-captains Shreyas Iyer of Kolkata Knight Riders and KL Rahul of Lucknow Super Giants.

Pant has been a part of the Delhi franchise since his debut into the IPL side in 2016, scoring 3,284 runs at 35.31 with one century and 18 fifties in 111 matches.