IPL 2019: Five Overseas bowlers who could be called up as replacements
The Indian Premier League is just weeks away and the buzz around is ever increasing. The twelfth edition of the tournament is unlike any other editions as it is affected by two grand events - General elections in India and the ICC ODI Cricket World Cup.
While the organizers have made clear that the tournament will be completely held in India, the World Cup has already started to show its impact in the form of player withdrawals.
While star pacers like Mitchell Starc and Pat Cummins have opted out of the tournament, any slight injury concern might see the national boards calling back their players midway during the tournament.
In such situations, all the teams should have a contingency plan in place to replace those players. In this article, we try to compile a list of five overseas players who might be called up by the franchises as replacements.
*All the stats are updated as of January 26, 2019*
#5 Dale Steyn
After the 2015 World Cup, Dale Steyn suffered a series of injury setbacks and has not been the same ever since. He recently returned to the national side and has shown that he has still got the zeal in him.
Currently, he might not be the most fearsome bowler in the circuit but is still lethal enough to take down any opposition on his day. He displayed the same in the recently concluded Mzansi Super League.
By picking up 12 wickets, he helped his side, Cape Town Blitz, to top the points table and reach the finals. His economy rate of 6.48 in nine MSL matches is a testimony of his ability to restrict the run flow.
#4 Adam Zampa
Adam Zampa, one of the two bowlers in IPL to pick up six wickets in an innings, has the second-best figure in the history of IPL. His 6-19 for Rising Pune Supergiant against the Sunrisers Hyderabad helped will always have a place in the history books.
Zampa, who is part of the limited overs setup of the Australian team, is a quality leg-spinner and will be a very useful bowler on Indian pitches. With most teams already having a foreign spinner in the squad, Zampa could not find any bids in the auction for 2019 IPL. However, he would be a perfect replacement for any spinner.
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