IPL 2022: 3 players who can lead the Ahmedabad franchise
Ahmedabad and Lucknow have been announced as the two new franchises that will be part of a 10-team IPL from the 2022 season. The BCCI confirmed on Monday that while RP-Sanjiv Goenka group won the bid for the Lucknow franchise, CVC Capital Partners will be owning the Ahmedabad franchise.
This won't be Gujarat's first representation in the IPL. The Gujarat Lions were part of the prestigious tournament for a couple of years between 2016 and 2017, following Chennai Super Kings (CSK) and Rajasthan Royals' (RR) bans.
With a mega auction lined up in December, the Ahmedabad franchise will be on the lookout for players who can lead the franchise. While questions around retention rules are yet to be disclosed, the new franchise will be eyeing players who would not only be fan favorites and offer a sense of belonging, but also provide them with a platform to fare well in the tournament.
On that note, we take a look at the three players who can captain the Ahmedabad franchise in the next IPL.
#1 Ravindra Jadeja
Ravindra Jadeja is one of the best T20I all-rounders in the world. The southpaw will be one of the main targets for Ahmedabad if he is not retained by Chennai Super Kings.
Jadeja has played 200 matches in the IPL, aggregating 2638 runs in addition to bagging 127 wickets. He is also a livewire on the field.
Jadeja, who not only gives the Ahmedabad franchise a captaincy option, is also someone around whom the franchise can build their team. With the all-rounder playing for Saurashtra, he would also be the fan favorite in Gujarat.
#2 David Warner
David Warner is expected to be a sought-after player in the upcoming IPL mega auction. The Australian played a key part in leading Sunrisers Hyderabad to their maiden IPL title in 2016.
While the story of Hyderabad and Warner came to a bitter end in IPL 2021, he is most likely to be up for grabs in the auction.
With 5449 runs in the IPL at an average of 41.59 and a strike rate of 139.96, opening batters in T20s don't come much better than David Warner. The southpaw became the first player to win the Orange Cap three times in the IPL in 2019.
While his recent run of bad form has raised some questions, perhaps no foreign captain would be a better fit to lead a new franchise in the IPL than David Warner.
#3 Ishan Kishan
The young Indian wicketkeeper-batter made his name in the IPL with the Mumbai Indians. Ishan Kishan has come into his own in recent years, playing a brand of fearless cricket that is often reflected in his batting.
In his brief IPL career, Kishan has scored 1452 runs at an average of 28.47 and a strike rate of 136.33. He also leads the Jharkhand side in List-A cricket and in the T20s.
Due to uncertainty surrounding the retention options, Mumbai Indians might have to make a choice between Hardik Pandya and Ishan Kishan before the mega auction. This could be Ahmedabad's opportunity to pick the youngster, who would be an exceptional signing for the franchise as they look to build for the future.
Kishan embodies the kind of fearless cricket a franchise might look to adopt. A captain from Jharkhand leading an IPL side to victory, where have we seen that before?