Duminy worth the money spent on him

Footballers are accustomed to being traded for millions of dollars from one club to another. It’s routine. Cricket, however, was not too accustomed to this before the DLF IPL. So when players like English duo Kevin Pietersen and Andrew Flintoff were sold for $1.55 million, the highest fee of the second auction, management and fans of the respective Royal Challengers Bangalore and Chennai Super Kings wanted a major return on the investment.

Now that both have returned home, KP for national duty and Freddie through injury, and especially in the case of Flinftoff, it has been proven that the most expensive players don’t guarantee success.

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But like Chelsea have shown in football, money does have it benefits, and at the moment JP Duminy is demonstrating it for the Mumbai Indians. When the richest man in India, Mukesh Ambani, splashed $950 000 on the young South African, many were bemused. Who was the little left-hander from Cape Town? Yes, he’s just come off from a spectacular debut series in Australia for the Proteas, but surely that’s too much for a player so inexperienced? It was just one series after all.

Fortunately for the Mumbai Indians, South African legends Shaun Pollock and Jonty Rhodes knew the capabilities of Duminy, with Pollock having played with the 25-year-old during the latter stages of his stellar international career. He knew Duminy had for years dominated the South African domestic scene since making his debut for Western Province whilst still at school.

“It’s great having Polly around, as I do lean on him sometimes. I have spoken to him about the pressure of the big price tag, but he always says that I must just relax and go out there and play my natural game,” says Duminy.

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