With an Azharuddeen and SRK to spice things up, all set for another IPL mega auction
It is that time of the year when 292 cricketers from around the world will go under the hammer at the IPL auction. Here is what to expect at the auctions happening on Thursday in Chennai.
The big names in the fray
Overseas: Aaron Finch, Alex Hales, Steve Smith, Jason Roy, Shakib Al Hasan, Moeen Ali, Glenn Maxwell, Dawid Malan, Chirs Morris, Mustafizur Rahman, Mark Wood, Sheldon Cotrell, Nathan Couter-Nile, Ben Cutting, Moises Henriques, Marnus Labuschagne, Kyle Jamieson, James Neesham, Carlos Brathwaite, Isuru Udana.
Indian: Umesh Yadav, Kedar Jadhav, Harbhajan Singh, Karun Nair, Shivam Dube, Piyush Chawla, Varun Aaron, Pawan Negi.
Apart from these names, there are few Indian uncapped players who will be highly sought after.
K Gowtham (Karnataka): The off-spinner who can hit the ball a long way. He has previously been used as a finisher by Rajasthan Royals. With Kings XI Punjab last season, he failed to make the same impact. But don't be surprised if he is among the big buys.
Shahrukh Khan (Tamil Nadu): Lit the Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 tournament with his blitzkrieg that helped TN lift the title. A clean-hitting batsman, who can also bowl off-spinners, this SRK has gotten quite a few franchises interested.
Mohammed Azharuddeen (Kerala): Scored a scintillating century against Mumbai in the Mushtaq Ali. Although opening slots are occupied could get in as a back-up opener.
It's not just these three. The likes of M Siddharth, J Suchith, G Periyasamy, Ankit Rajpoot, Tushar Deshpande will also attract interest.
What are they after
Chennai Super Kings | Available purse: Rs 19.90 crore | Slots left: 6
What are they looking for? They need impact players, especially with the bat. With just one overseas slot remaining, Chennai already seem to have their eyes on a player. Who it is remains the big question.
Possible buys: Overseas batsman/all-rounder, an off-spinner
Delhi Capitals | Available purse: Rs 13.40 crore | Slots left: 8
What are they looking for? They have all the bases covered. They will use the auction to get their back-ups.
Punjab Kings | Available purse: Rs 53.30 crore | Slots left: 9
What are they looking for? After releasing quite a few players, they will use the auction to fill in major holes. They need options with the bat and ball.
Kolkata Knight Riders | Available purse: Rs 10.75 crore | Slots left: 8
What are they looking for? Bowling has been an issue over the last couple of seasons. Even in batting they have lacked a reliable top-order batsman. Need to fix this at this auction.
Mumbai Indians | Available purse: Rs 15.35 crore | Slots left: 7
What are they looking for? Their XI is sealed. But they will definitely be after overseas pacers as they have only one Trent Boult. Could go for a spinner too.
Rajasthan Royals | Available purse: Rs 37.85 crore | Slots left: 9
What are they looking for? Have too many holes to fill. So they have to be smart about their spending at the auction. They need at least a couple of middle-order batsmen and first-choice seamer.
Royal Challengers Bangalore | Available purse: Rs 35.40 crore | Slots left: 11
What are they looking for? Will be in for all-rounders and a top-order batsmen. Each season they have tried to address it, but have failed to get players who could make an impact.
Sunrisers Hyderabad | Available purse: Rs 10.75 crore | Slots left: 3
What are they looking for? Have only three slots and expect Hyderabad to go for one overseas fast bowler. Also will look to strengthen their batting line-up.
Who will conduct it?
Auctioneer for the day is Hugh Edmeades. He is a British international fine art, classic car and charity auctioneer. Conducted the auction of 88 guitars belonging to Eric Clapton raising a total of $7,438,624. Has also auctioneered Daniel Craig's Aston Martin DB10 from James Bond's Spectre, which sold for £2,434,500 in 2016.
Most expensive buys in IPL so far
Yuvraj Singh Rs 16 crore to SunRisers Hyderabad
Pat Cummins Rs 15.5 crore to Kolkata Knight Riders
Ben Stokes Rs 14.5 crore to Rising Pune Supergiant