"Brings Additional Pressure": South Africa Great On Big IPL Deals For Mitchell Starc, Pat Cummins

Former South African all-rounder Chris Morris, who was once the most expensive player in the Indian Premier League (IPL) history, hailed the record-breaking bid of Australian pacer Mitchell Starc by Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) for the 2024 season, saying that it will add some pressure on him but the pacer will be able to justify it with his performances and experience. In a history-making move, Starc was bought by KKR for a whopping Rs 24.75 crore just hours after his skipper, Pat Cummins, breached the Rs 20 crore mark after being bought by Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH), becoming the most expensive player in the history of the IPL at the auction in Dubai held in December last year.

"It is excellent. The bidding is out of our control. If you compare cricket with what other sports are paying, it is great that the best players in the world are being paid the highest. It is an excellent achievement but also brings additional pressure. But they (Cummins and Starc) can handle that pressure, that is why they were bought for so much money. They are performing really well right now and are red-hot," said Morris to ANI.

On the Cape Town pitch for the second Test between India and South Africa, which ended in just two days with 642 balls being bowled, making it the shortest Test ever, Morris said that it is completely fine if one designs pitches to suit the home teams and their personal performances.

He also said that Indian skipper Rohit was right in expressing hypocrisy of the other side when they are fine with getting a home advantage in their own territories but criticise other countries, like India, for making pitches suiting the hosts, for example, the spin-friendly pitches in India.

"Rohit hit the nail on the head. He said that