That’s some huge cash for somebody who will not be even within the beginning XI

Former India player Aakash Chopra has chosen Mustafizur Rahman as one of the overpriced picks at the IPL 2026 auction. He highlighted that the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) have acquired the Bangladesh seamer for a massive sum, even though he is unlikely to get a place in their preferred playing XI.

KKR spent ₹9.20 crore to buy Mustafizur at the IPL 2026 auction in Abu Dhabi on Tuesday, December 16. The three-time champions had earlier acquired Matheesha Pathirana for ₹18 crore as potentially their first-choice overseas seamer.

In a video shared on his YouTube channel, ‘Aakash Chopra,’ the former India opener wondered why KKR spent such a huge sum to acquire Mustafizur as a backup at the IPL 2026 auction.

“There is a supply and demand story for sure, but Mustafizur Rahman for ₹9.20 crore. That’s a lot of money for someone who is not even in the starting XI. One thing is to give ₹18 crore to Pathirana because you have to play that player 100 percent, or to give ₹25.20 crore to Cameron Green as you would play him all 14 matches,” he said.

While acknowledging Mustafizur‘s credentials, Chopra reckoned that ₹9.20 crore is a bit too much for a backup.

“Mustafizur is actually a backup for Pathirana. He is a high-quality backup. A better backup than that wasn’t available in this auction, to be very honest, but ₹9.20 crore,” he observed.

The Kolkata Knight Riders bought Matheesha Pathirana at the IPL 2026 auction after a bidding war with the Delhi Capitals (DC) and the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG). They subsequently outbid DC and the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) to acquire Mustafizur Rahman.

“He is the new Maxwell now” – Aakash Chopra on Liam Livingstone’s acquisition at the IPL 2026 auction

In the same video, Aakash Chopra opined that the SunRisers Hyderabad’s (SRH) acquisition of Liam Livingstone for ₹13 crore at the IPL 2026 auction was an overpriced deal, drawing parallels between the England all-rounder and Glenn Maxwell.

“I am thinking about Liam Livingstone. He is the new Maxwell now because the last year wasn’t good, and the year before that wasn’t good either. He has really flattered to deceive, and that’s why he gets released. First Punjab and then RCB released him. However, Hyderabad said they would give ₹13 crore, which I think is a little too much,” he said.

The cricketer-turned-commentator reckoned the Gujarat Titans (GT) also spent a little too much to acquire Jason Holder for ₹7 crore.

“Jason Holder captained the St Kitts & Nevis Patriots, bowled and batted, but at ₹7 crore. There was a time when he used to do very well in the IPL, but those days are in the past. He was with RR and his performance was very middling. GT have bought him for ₹7 crore and I have no idea where they would play him,” Chopra reasoned.

However, Aakash Chopra noted that he wouldn’t include players like Mangesh Yadav, Prashant Veer, Kartik Sharma and Auqib Dar in the same bracket. While acknowledging that these uncapped Indian players have been bought for massive sums and don’t have huge numbers to show, the analyst highlighted that their acquisitions warm his heart.