Naman Dhir scored a belligerent 24-ball 46 in Mumbai Indians' chase of 204 against Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) on Friday (Apr 4). He came on to bat at a time when MI were 17/2 and the youngster took the attack to opposition and in some style.

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He hit two back-to-back sixes and then two consecutive fours to India Test bowler Akash Deep who was playing his first match of the IPL 2025 season. He put on 69-run partnership for the third wicket with Suryakumar Yadav in just 35 balls. Naman hit four fours and three sixes in his innings and easily overshadowed SKY - not an easy thing to do. 

Who is Naman Dhir - bought back by MI for nearly 18 times of base price in IPL 2025 auction?

He first caught Mumbai Indians scouts' eye during the 2024 Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy while playing for Punjab. Dhir, however, had played only an outside role in their title win but the he went on a rampage in local Sher-e-Punjab trophy where he smashed 466 runs at a strike rate of nearly 193 as reported by ESPNCricinfo.

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In 2024 auction, he was picked by for his base price of INR 20 lakh ($23,400 approx). He played seven games for MI last season with his 28-ball 62 against LSG being the highlight for him. Overall, he smashed 140 runs in IPL 2024 at a strike rate of 177.

Come 2025, he was let go by MI ahead of the IPL mega auction only to be bought back. At the auction, there was an intense bidding war for Naman but Mumbai Indians, known for backing the talent spotted by them, used Right to Match card for the 25-year-old youngster.

Mumbai Indians eventually spent INR 5.25 crore or nearly $600,000 for Dhir - roughly 18 times of his base price of INR 30,000 ($35,000).

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The batter also took only three games to show his worth and repaid the faith in style.