“I think we have been extremely satisfied with the way we have gone about so far''- PBKS coach Anil Kumble

Former Indian cricketer and Punjab Kings (PBKS) head coach Anil Kumble has conceded that the dynamics of the mega-auction were "very different and challenging" while alluding to the more demand than supply factor.

Punjab Kings had a brilliant auction as they claimed the likes of Jonny Bairstow (Rs 6.75 Crore), Shikhar Dhawan (Rs 8.25 Crore), Liam Livingstone (Rs 11.50 Crore), Shah Rukh Khan (Rs 9 Crore), Odean Smith (Rs 6  Crore) to cover most of the chinks that had previously  existed in their set-up.

"There is absolutely more demand than supply, but I guess there were challenges because there were 10 teams and it was different,” Kumble told Star Sports.

“I have been to a couple of big mega auctions in 2011, 2014 and smaller auctions before this auction. This one has been really, really different and more challenging because every player, that whoever is going for, is going for a large sum of money, so the purse is dwindling no matter what value you have in your purse," he added.

"The auction dynamics are very very different and you have to be nimble and that is something we realised in the last one and half days. You have to be even more nimble during this auction then the previous ones.” he said.

The former leg-spinner was particularly pleased with the fact that a lot of local pacers earned a gig in the auction.

"Some of the players, especially the Indian fast bowlers, I am really happy for them, there has been a lot of demand for them and it is wonderful that they have been well rewarded for all their efforts.”

Kumble expressed his satisfaction at the way he and his colleagues at PBKS went about their business in the auction.

“I think we have been extremely satisfied with the way we have gone about so far, that squad that we wanted to put together, we are very close to achieving what we put together despite the challenging environment that you have at the auction.” said Kumble.

He also touched up on the fact that they kept the leadership credentials of some of the players in mind while picking them.

"I think, in a T20, the format or any new squad you want to put together, you would want to get some quality players, and also the leadership group, so yes the focus was not just on the players that we want to acquire but also acquire some leadership groups and build a culture," he added.

Punjab are yet to name a captain for the forthcoming season but it's likely that they might opt for Shikhar Dhawan given his past experience.

Punjab have reasons to be happy as they seem to have built a brilliant squad, at least on paper. With Mayank and Dhawan to open, Bairstow and Livingstone in the middle and the likes of SRK to finish, their top-7 has all the makings of being the best in the competition. 

The likes of Raj Bawa, Rishi Dhawan will add balance to their side due to their versatile skills while in the bowling department, they have acquired the pace of Kagiso Rabada and Ishan Porel, and a power-play specialist like Sandeep Sharma.

The spin department will be led by Rahul Chahar and left-arm orthodox Harpreet Brar.