IPL 2021 Auction: 3 uncapped players who may fetch the big bucks
The auction for the 14th edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) is almost around the corner. The franchises have announced their list of retentions and releases, some of which have left experts, fans and cricketing pundits surprised.
However, a few IPL teams engaged in trades to bolster their squads as well. Daniel Sams and Harshal Patel were traded to the Royal Challengers Bangalore from the Delhi Capitals; experienced campaigner Robin Uthappa will turn up for the Chennai Super Kings after acquiring him from the Rajasthan Royals.
Although the limelight is often on the foreign and capped Indian stars, IPL franchises have been breaking the bank over uncapped Indian players who have impressed in the domestic circuit.
In the 2020 edition of the IPL, two uncapped batsmen played a crucial role in Mumbai Indians' title win: Ishan Kishan was the Mumbai outfit's highest scorer, garnering 516 runs, while Suryakumar Yadav scored 480 runs.
For the Royal Challengers Bangalore, left-hander Devdutt Padikkal had an impressive run, finishing as their top run-scorer with 473 runs.
Uncapped bowlers also made significant contributions to their IPL side's success as well.
The then-uncapped pacer T Natarajan snared 16 wickets for the Sunrisers Hyderabad, while Rahul Chahar picked up 15 for five-time IPL champions Mumbai Indians. Wily spinner Ravi Bishnoi, playing his first IPL season, finished with a tally of 12 wickets for the Kings XI Punjab.
Three uncapped Indian players who could bag big-money deals in IPL 2021:
The trend of uncapped Indian players playing stellar roles for their franchises could continue in IPL 2021 as well.
It will not be surprising to see franchises loosening their purse strings over uncapped players, who could turn out to be match winners. On that note, let us take a look at three such players who might fetch the big bucks in the IPL 2021 auction.
#3 Ashutosh Aman
At the ripe old age of 34, Ashutosh Aman has ample experience under his belt. The 2019 Domestic Cricketer of the Year award winner will be on a few IPL teams' radars, as he finished as the highest wicket-taker in the recently concluded Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy.
The left-arm spinner possesses a bag of tricks and has bamboozled batsmen in the tournament more often than not. He finished with 16 wickets in six wickets at an economy rate of just 5.08 runs per over.
The Bihar skipper could add value to any IPL team that picks him. Royal Challengers Bangalore lack a left arm off-spinner after releasing Pawan Negi and might be interested in Aman, as he would bring experience to the table.
The Kolkata Knight Riders and the Kings XI Punjab could also go after Aman for the same reason.
See the KXIP retained players list 2021 here.
#2 Avi Barot:
Avi Barot finished as the fourth-highest run-scorer in the latest edition of the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy.
What was impressive about the Saurashtra opener's performances was the way he went about scoring his runs. Barot went after the bowlers right from the word 'go', something that was evident in his impressive strike rate of 184.96 during the tournament.
After being chosen as the Under-19 Cricketer of the Year in 2011, Barot failed to perform consistently. However, he seems to have found form and could interest a few IPL franchises this year. His wicket-keeping abilities could also add to his impressive portfolio and might see him bag a lucrative IPL contract come the 18th of February.
With just two specialist openers in their ranks, the Rajasthan Royals could look to add a few to their squad; Barot could well be the player they might be interested in. Along with the Royals, the Knight Riders could also have interest in Barot. The absence of a back-up keeper along with the dearth of specialist openers in their ranks could see them splurge big on Barot.
#1 Chetan Sakariya
The second player from Saurashtra to feature in this list, Chetan Sakariya, could certainly be on a few IPL franchises' wishlists.
Apart from his uncanny ability to bowl clever variations and stem the flow of runs, Sakariya is a wicket-taking bowler who can chip in with crucial wickets too.
Sakariya bowled the second-highest number of dot balls (65) in the recently-concluded Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. The left-arm pacer finished with 12 wickets, which included a fifer, and had an economy rate of 4.90, which was impressive, as he bowled in the powerplay and at the death.
One of the best domestic pacers to be a part of the IPL auction, Sakariya could, in all likelihood, attract attention from multiple franchises which might be willing to pay the big bucks to employ his services.
Mumbai Indians have released five pacers from their squad and might go after Sakariya, who could form a deadly trio with Trent Boult and Jasprit Bumrah.
The Rajasthan Royals could also target Sakariya since they released a handful of pacers and might look to unite the pair of Sakariya and Jaydev Unadkat, who wreaked havoc in the 2021 Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy.
Similarly, the Royal Challengers Bangalore do not have a left-arm pacer in their ranks at the moment after releasing Isuru Udana; the fact that Sakariya will not occupy one of their foreign players' spot could tempt them to go for the bowler.