IPL Auction 2020: List of players with highest base price, analysis and big names to watch out for
Only a few days remain for the IPL 2020 player auction, which will be held on the 19th of December at Kolkata. With the franchises having released quite a few players, the upcoming player auction will see close to 70+ players drafted into different teams.
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The list of players for this year’s auction has been released and will see a total of 337 players set to come under the hammer. A total of 186 Indian players, 143 overseas players and 3 from the associate nations would be up for grabs on the auction day, with a maximum of 73 players set to be picked from a whole lot of names available on the day.
How do all the teams stack-up ahead of the auction?
Teams like CSK, MI, and SRH haven’t let go of many players and don’t have a huge purse either. These franchises already have a well-settled unit and would just look to sign a few backup players in the upcoming auction.
Delhi Capitals were pretty active in the trading window and have a solid Indian players core in place. However, they appear thin in terms of overseas players and will need to sign some quality players to plug a few gaps.
RCB, RR, KXIP, and KKR have released players in bulk and so these sides could be expected to be among the busiest teams in the auction.
Who are the players with the highest base price?
Out of the 337 players, 7 players have the maximum base price of ₹2 Cr whereas most of the other star players have set their base prices at ₹1.5 Cr, ₹1 Cr or ₹50 lakh.
Among the 7 players with the highest base price, 5 of them are from Australia, while the other two players in the list are Angelo Mathews (Sri Lanka) and Dale Steyn (South Africa).
Four England players – Jason Roy, Eoin Morgan, David Willey, and Chris Woakes are in the ₹1.5 Cr base price category while veteran middle-order batsman Robin Uthappa, who was surprisingly released by KKR will also be available starting at a base price of ₹1.5 Cr.
Who are the hot picks?
If one was to have a look at the team combination of all the franchises ahead of the auctions, it can be noted that overseas pace bowlers could be in big demand. Pat Cummins (₹2 Cr) is one of the best in the business and his ability to tonk the ball could also be in focus.
Left-armers always attract bidders and Sheldon Cottrell (50L) hasn’t done any harm to his chances of landing an IPL contract on the back of a terrific performance against India. Among the other quicks, Nathan Coulter Nile (₹1 Cr), Kesrick Williams (₹50 lakh), Chris Jordan (₹75 lakh) and Tom Curran (₹1 Cr) will attract a few bidders.
Indian seam bowling all-rounders are also a rare brand of quality on offer, while overseas players who offer a lot with bat and ball have always been vital in the franchise-based league. This could see the likes of Chris Morris (₹1.5 Cr), Sam Curran (₹1 Cr), Marcus Stoinis (₹1 Cr) and Jimmy Neesham (₹50 lakh) earn big bids.
Most of these players were released by their franchises and it won’t be surprising if they are re-signed by their previous franchises for a lower price.
Overseas explosive batsmen are always in demand and this time as well, there are a few up for grabs. Chris Lynn (₹2 Cr), Aaron Finch (₹1 Cr), Jason Roy (₹1.5 Cr), and Evin Lewis (₹1 Cr) will be hoping to start a bidding war among teams, while the middle-order batsmen like Glenn Maxwell (₹2 Cr), Eoin Morgan (₹1.5 Cr) and Shimron Hetmyer (₹50 lakh) could pocket big contracts as well.
Among the Indian players set to feature in the auction, Robin Uthappa (₹1.5 Cr) and Jaydev Unadkat (₹1 Cr) are two of the big names who can add value to any of the teams for IPL 2020.
Are there any dark horses?
If one was to go by the trend of the previous auctions, there have always been lesser-known players or youngsters who have earned big bids courtesy of their performances in the domestic circuit.
This year as well, Indian U19 players such as Yashwasvi Jaiswal and Priyam Garg might attract quite a few bidders while the likes of Virat Singh and R Sai Kishore, both of who performed well in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy can start a bidding war among franchises.
Tom Banton from England has also raised a few eyebrows with his explosive batting at the top of the order and could attract interest from multiple franchises.