Kumar Sangakkara on Chris Morris's price tag: "If you want a player, you have to stretch yourself"

The Rajasthan Royals director of cricket on that record-breaking bid, building a side around an English trio and his plans for the future

Kumar Sangakkara has justified Rajasthan Royals’ record-breaking auction bid for Chris Morris, stating "if you really want a player, you have to stretch yourself."

Thursday’s (February 18) IPL auction saw four players – Morris, Kyle Jamieson, Glenn Maxwell and Jhye Richardson – attract bids in excess of £1million but it was Rajasthan’s £1.6million purchase of the South African which gained the headlines.

The 33-year, who was released by Royal Challengers Bangalore at the end of the 2020 edition, hasn’t played for his country since March 2019, whereas several standout T20 players, including Alex Hales and Jason Roy, went undrafted.

However, Rajasthan’s director of cricket, Kumar Sangakkara, believes Morris – signed to support Jofra Archer in the pace attack – is worth every penny while also suggesting the unusually high bids should be expected at small auctions.

"I think it’s a pattern with small auctions when you have big purses and a few gaps to fill," Sangakkara said. "For us, it was a case of trying to get some support for Archer to get him to be as effective as possible.

THE MOST EXPENSIVE PLAYER IN #IPL HISTORY IS NOW A ROYAL!!!

WELCOME, CHRIS MORRIS! 🥳#HallaBol | #IPLAuction | #IPL2021 | @Tipo_Morris

— Rajasthan Royals (@rajasthanroyals) February 18, 2021

"[Morris] has one of the best economy rates at the death, he’s probably top of the tree, and he’s in the top ten players in terms of positive impact on a side’s performance.

"We were hoping to get another fast bowler but the prices that were going around were a little too high in terms of a Richardson. [Adam] Milne was an option and of course, Jamieson went astronomical.

"The high prices are the nature of the auction and supply and demand dynamics. If you really want a player and you’re competing against someone who has a huge purse, you have to stretch yourself."

Commenting on the players who went undrafted, he continued: "The ultimate thing is, if franchises have a specific role for a player they will go after him. We had Jamieson going up, Riley Meredith, Richardson – all excellent cricketers and they fill specific roles and certain sides have the budget to go for them.

"Chris Morris grabbed the headlines being the most expensive player in the history of the IPL and it’s just a case of his role being available and sides wanting him."

One of the dangers of such bidding wars is the pressure it places on an individual to justify their price tag. However, Sangakkara is confident Rajasthan have the structure in place to support Morris, and others, through the season.

"The price we pay for a player is not our expectation," he said. "We identify why we need a player, what gap he fills and what role he can take on, but our job is to make that player understand that the auction price is just the auction price.

Chris Morris, Kyle Jamieson and Glenn Maxwell light-up record-breaking IPL auction

"There are no guarantees in cricket, even the best players can have lean runs and bad performances and I think for Rajasthan the key is building a culture where, irrespective of your auction price, you have a role and we want you to execute it. We value them as a player and person, and not just as a commodity."

What attracted Rajasthan to Morris, aside from his 140kph bowling capabilities, are his figures in the death overs. In six matches for Royal Challengers Bangalore last season, the South African had an economy of 7.03 at the death and it’s in this area where Sangakkara believes his partnership with Archer, and the rest of the bowling attack, will blossom.

"[Archer] could do two overs at the top or three at the top, or two in the middle. We want our best death bowlers to try and execute those roles and have Archer doing the bulk of the attacking work," Sangakkara said.

"Morris has extraordinary numbers at the death which are surprising when you look at the players who are below him – the Bumrah’s and Malinga’s of this world who have unbelievable death bowling.

"We also have Mustafizur Rahman. He’s a specialist in the middle and death section so that will give us the ability  -with Andrew Tye being in the squad as well – to rest Archer at certain times if he’s feeling fatigued or Morris, but we’ll always have one of them leading the attack."

Sangakkara was also full of praise Archer’s international teammates Jos Buttler and Ben Stokes, considering the trio essential to the franchise’s plans for the future.

"I have no doubt they’re three of the most valuable players in the world," he said. "They’re three players who know how to deal with pressure, who’ve proven time and time again their excellence out in the middle.

"Jos Buttler is extremely adaptable in the way he plays. He’s one of the few I have seen, alongside AB de Villiers, who can do that role. Archer is a superstar. He was the most valuable player in the IPL last season. And Stokes, there’s nothing else you can say about [him] other than that he’s exactly the type of player any side would want.

"We’re very happy to have them as our core. They’ve been with Rajasthan for a while now. There is a big auction next year, but they’ll definitely be part of the core that Rajasthan build their strategy around, not just this year but once the big auction comes, there will be a big focus on them remaining here."

Quizzed on Stokes and Buttler’s roles in the side, Sangakkara continued: "Stokes has historically been a player who has been extremely impactful in the middle order and Jos at the top. [But] Buttler is the more adaptable player.

"We’re looking at him in the role where he can do either [top or middle] and fit into that core role of being out linchpin batsman around whom we have everyone else."

One concern for Rajasthan in relying so heavily on three England internationals is the trio’s availability towards the business end of the season. England have a red-ball series against New Zealand scheduled for the beginning of June while the IPL playoffs, though yet to be confirmed, will likely run until the end of May.

However, Sangakkara is confident of retaining all three players for the whole tournament and backed cover signing, Liam Livingstone, to step up if necessary.

"The feedback we got was that they should be available for the whole tournament and we’ve structured our strategy with that in mind," he said.

"We did get Liam Livingstone as cover. He’s had a really good Big Bash. He’s improved in leaps and bounds. His spin playing ability has increased, he can bat in the middle and at the top of the order and he’s going to have a month in India before the IPL starts with the T20 side.

^{Ben Stokes, Jofra Archer and Jos Buttler are all lining up for Rajasthan Royals}

"In terms of availability, at the moment they’re there for the whole tournament. They’re a crucial core in terms of overseas players and we’ve built our strategy around them."

And Sangakkara is backing this strategy to succeed in 2021 and into the future as Rajasthan look to put last season’s disappointment behind them and return to the highs of 2008.

"[Last season] was a funny IPL. We were bottom of the table but one win away from the playoffs," Sangakkara said. "The key for RR to get through this season successfully is to have a foundation which can be built upon and setting down a structure that is really excellent and become a blueprint for how we develop in the future.

"Identify our key overseas players, our key local players, hold onto them and develop around them. The most successful franchises – Chennai and Mumbai – have a lot of loyalty built into that core and it’s something [we] have to mirror down the line."

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