Dinesh Karthik Predicts Big Payday for South Africa Star in IPL Auction

South Africa all-rounder Gerald Coetzee is generating buzz ahead of the highly anticipated Indian Premier League (IPL) mega auction. Despite not being retained by Mumbai Indians, the 24-year-old is gearing up to enter the auction, which is scheduled to take place in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia on November 24 and 25. Known for his right-arm pace bowling skills and batting prowess, Coetzee has set his base price at INR 1.25 crore, attracting attention from several IPL franchises.

Former India wicketkeeper-batter Dinesh Karthik has predicted that Gerald Coetzee will take a big fat pay cheque in the upcoming auction. Gerald Coetzee has been very impressive in the ongoing four-match T20I series against India.

Coming into bat when Proteas were in a spot of bother, while chasing 125 in the second T20I, Coetzee hit a quickfire 19 runs to help the hosts get over the line. In the first T20I as well, he had scored 23 runs. In the ongoing series, he has so far taken four wickets, with three scalps coming in the first T20I.

"I don't know much Cricket South Africa board are paying him but I am sure he till take a fat pay cheque in a couple of weeks time. He is impressing one and all. He is a thinking cricketer, he is someone who has worked on his batting. He is not just a one-trick pony," Dinesh Karthik told Cricbuzz.

"These are very good signs for South Africa. The fact that you can have an all-rounder who can bat at No.7, if Marco Jansen can bat at No.7, Coetzee at No.8, it says that there is depth in that batting," he added.

Former India pacer Zaheer Khan, who was recently appointed as the mentor of Lucknow Super Giants, said that Coetzee comes off as someone who works very hard, and is always willing to contribute for the team in some way or the other.

"Lot of power there in his batting. Looks like he is preparing himself to play this kind of role. Looks like, he is someone who puts in a lot of effort to fulfill this role. He wants to contribute right through the game, and this is what stands out with him. Not with the bat, with the ball also, he wants to contribute," Zaheer Khan told Cricbuzz.

For the unversed, Dinesh Karthik was also recently appointed as the batting coach and batting mentor of Royal Challengers Bengaluru's (RCB) men's IPL team.

In IPL 2024, Gerald Coetzee was picked up by Mumbai Indians for INR 5 crore. He then played 10 matches for the franchise, taking 13 wickets and scoring 14 runs.