IPL playerIndia2008 to 2017
Rajat Bhatia
On scorecards: R Bhatia · Right-hand bat
Rajat Bhatia, a bowler, played ten IPL seasons for four franchises. One title came along the way.
The arrival
Rajat Bhatia was there from the start, in the league's first season, 2008, signed by Delhi Daredevils outside the auction.
That first season brought 9 matches, 34 runs and 6 wickets at 8.32 an over.
The peak
The best season was 2012, for Kolkata Knight Riders: 13 wickets at 7.29 runs an over, while the league's bowlers went for 7.64, with best figures of 2 for 14. Kolkata Knight Riders won the title that year.
Franchise by franchise
2008 to 2010, Delhi Daredevils. 22 matches and 19 wickets.
2011 to 2013, Kolkata Knight Riders. Arrived outside the auction. 46 matches, 159 runs and 32 wickets; champions in 2012.
2014 to 2015, Rajasthan Royals. Bought at the 2014 auction for ₹1.70 cr. 14 matches and 12 wickets.
2016 to 2017, Rising Pune Supergiants. Bought at the 2016 auction for ₹60 lakh. 13 matches and 8 wickets.
4 spells with four franchises in all. The longest was with Delhi Daredevils, 2008 to 2010.
How the wickets came
With the ball, 71 wickets in 1,638 deliveries, at 7.40 runs an over against a league rate of 7.76 for the same seasons: 0.36 an over cheaper than the typical bowler of the time. There was one four-wicket haul, and the best figures were 4 for 15.
26.7% of the balls Rajat Bhatia bowled were dots, a lower share than 99% of the 150 bowlers with 500 balls or more; a wicket came every 23 balls.
The fielding record: 23 catches and 8 run-outs.
At the auction
Rajat Bhatia went under the hammer four times, bought twice and left unsold twice. The highest price was ₹1.70 cr, paid by Rajasthan Royals in 2014, more than 5 times the base price. The market cooled over time: the last purchase, in 2016, cost ₹60 lakh.
Seasons without an auction entry were played under a retention, a trade or a signing made outside the auction.
The legacy
Rajat Bhatia made 95 IPL appearances, the last for Rising Pune Supergiant in 2017, and won 1 player-of-the-match award.
Season by season
| Season | Team | M | Runs | HS | Avg | SR | 50/100 | Wkts | Econ | Best | Ct | POTM | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | Delhi Daredevils | 9 | 34 | 17 | 17.0 | 121.4 | 0/0 | 6 | 8.32 | 2/17 | 1 | ||
| 2009 | Delhi Daredevils | 8 | 8 | 4 | 1.6 | 44.4 | 0/0 | 10 | 6.74 | 4/15 | 4 | 1 | |
| 2010 | Delhi Daredevils | 5 | 24 | 21 | 8.0 | 141.2 | 0/0 | 3 | 8.25 | 1/24 | 1 | ||
| 2011 | Kolkata Knight Riders | 14 | 25 | 11 | 8.3 | 113.6 | 0/0 | 8 | 6.56 | 3/22 | 4 | ||
| 2012 | Kolkata Knight Riders | 17 | 35 | 12 | 11.7 | 125.0 | 0/0 | 13 | 7.29 | 2/14 | 6 | Champions | |
| 2013 | Kolkata Knight Riders | 15 | 99 | 26* | 16.5 | 123.8 | 0/0 | 11 | 7.57 | 2/23 | 0 | ||
| 2014 | Rajasthan Royals | 12 | 67 | 23 | 13.4 | 126.4 | 0/0 | 12 | 7.45 | 3/23 | 4 | ||
| 2015 | Rajasthan Royals | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | – | 0/0 | 0 | 9.20 | - | 0 | ||
| 2016 | Rising Pune Supergiants | 10 | 34 | 21 | 34.0 | 170.0 | 0/0 | 6 | 7.14 | 2/19 | 2 | ||
| 2017 | Rising Pune Supergiant | 3 | 16 | 16 | 16.0 | 94.1 | 0/0 | 2 | 7.86 | 2/14 | 1 |
Franchise journey
- Delhi Daredevils: 2008 to 2010
- Kolkata Knight Riders: 2011 to 2013
- Rajasthan Royals: 2014 to 2015
- Rising Pune Supergiants: 2016 to 2017
Ball-by-ball detail
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| Dot balls faced | 36.6% |
| Balls per four | 11.8 |
| Balls per six | 21.9 |
| Dot balls bowled | 26.7% |
| Balls per wicket | 23 |
| Catches | 23 |
| Run-outs | 8 |
| Stumpings | 0 |
At the auction
| Auction | Set | Base price | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | UAL1 | ₹30 lakh | Sold to Rajasthan Royals for ₹1.70 cr |
| 2016 | – | ₹30 lakh | Sold to Rising Pune Supergiants for ₹60 lakh |
| 2018 | All-rounder | ₹40 lakh | Unsold |
| 2019 | All-rounder | ₹40 lakh | Unsold |
Sources
- CricArcade IPL season statistics
- CricArcade IPL auction archive
- Kaggle IPL Complete Match Dataset 2008-2026, ball-by-ball, cross-checked against Cricsheet