4 players who should be picked in the auction even if they are unavailable due to World Cup
The 2019 IPL fever has started to kick in among the fans as the auction is just a few days away. The event which will be held in Jaipur on December 18, will have as many as 346 names going under the hammer out of which the franchises can pick a maximum of 70 players. The franchises will have their task cut out as they have a couple of factors to deal with when they pick their players.
First, the venue for the 2019 IPL is yet to be decided as the dates are clashing with the General Elections in India and secondly, most of the countries have allowed their players to take part in the T20 extravaganza for a limited period keeping the 2019 World Cup in mind.
Barring India, New Zealand and West Indies, the other boards are against allowing their players playing the whole tournament in a bid to keep them fresh for the World Cup.
The following is the deadline dates for the players to leave the IPL for international commitments.
Bangladesh: 15 April
England: 25 April
Australia: 2 May
South Africa: 10 May
Sri Lanka: 6 May
In spite of this, the franchise should look to invest in a few players keeping the future in mind. Let us take a look at four players who should be picked in the auction even if they are unavailable due to the World Cup.
Zahir Khan
Following the footsteps of Rashid Khan and Mujeeb-ur-Rahman, a lot of young Afghanistan spinners are set to take the cricket world by storm. The latest addition to the list of Afghanistan's spin-bowling sensation is chinaman bowler Zahir Khan Pakteen.
The 19-year-old is a classical chinaman bowler who can confuse the batsmen with his variations and unlike most of the chinaman bowlers, the Afghan teenager bowls faster through the air and gives the batsmen less time to pick him.
He was already picked by Rajasthan Royals in the 2018 IPL auction but was later ruled out of the tournament due to an injury and was eventually released ahead of the 2019 season. He went on to ply his trade for Lancashire in the Vitality T20 Blast and impressed everyone with his bowling.
Till date, he has taken 34 wickets at an average of 18 in T20 cricket and is yet to make his national debut. With him turning heads with his performances in white-ball cricket, he could be picked for the 2019 World Cup and the franchises should still invest in him keeping an eye on the future.