It is official – the dates for the biggest auction in world cricket have been revealed! On February 12th and February 13th in Bengaluru, we will know which of the sport’s megastars will be heading to the various franchises in the IPL.
Eight of last year’s franchises will be joined by two new teams for this season – Lucknow and Ahmedabad – adding more spice to this year’s IPL betting 2022 landscape.
It’s never too early to start pontificating about who is going where! I have been pouring over the gossip columns and looking at the latest news to find the top talking points ahead of the auction.
Who Will Be The Most Expensive Player In The IPL Auction?
It’s a difficult cricket prediction to make – mainly because we do not have access to the thought process of coaching staff and selectors of each side.
We can, though, look at the needs of a side, analyse where they need to strengthen most, and take a punt on how much they would be willing to spend to address their issues.
Therefore, I am picking Shreyas Iyer as my outside bet to be the most expensive pick of this year’s IPL auction.
Earmarked as a potential future Indian skipper, many will see the Indian Premier League as a trial period for his captaincy talents. There are a few clubs vying for a new captain too! MS Dhoni is approaching his final season for the Chennai Super Kings, while the likes of the Royal Challengers Bangalore, Punjab Kings and Kolkata Knight Riders could also be needing new captains.
I expect there to be a bidding war – and at a base price of INR 2 crore, his price could shoot up quickly.
Who Are The Two New IPL Sides And Who Are Their Draft Picks?
Indian cricket fans are welcoming Lucknow and Ahmedabad to the fold after they were cleared to play by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) following a meeting of the IPL governing council.
Lucknow are owned by the RP Sanjiv Goenka Group – an Indian multinational conglomerate headquartered in Kolkata under the stewardship of Sanjiv Goenka, who is the son of the late international businessman Rama Prasad Goenka and the great grandson of Sir Badri Prasad Goenka – the first Indian appointed Chairman of the Imperial Bank of India.
Ahmedabad will be funded by CVC Capital – a British private equity and investment advisory firm with over $75billion in assets.
Both sides have already announced their draft picks ahead of the auction – you can see the highlights below.
- Ahmedabad: Hardik Pandya ( ₹15 crore), Rashid Khan ( ₹15 crore), and Shubman Gill ( ₹8 crore).
- Lucknow: KL Rahul ( ₹17 crore), Marcus Stoinis ( ₹9.2 crore), and Ravi Bishnoi ( ₹4 crore).
You can check out the early odds on the IPL winner on several Indian betting sites, including Betway, 10CRIC, and Pure Win.
Which Are The Big Names To Look Out For?
The Indian Premier League attracts the biggest names – but some get more attention than others. Here are some of the big hitters and toe crunchers who teams will be eyeing up!
Quentin de Kock: The explosive wicket-keeper recently announced his international retirement and there will be a clamour of clubs aiming for his signature. He has amassed over 2,000 runs in the competition – including one century and 15 half centuries.
Pat Cummins: The Aussie pacer is in terrific form and must feel on top of the world after captaining the baggy greens to a dominant 4-0 Ashes win over England. In 2020, he was the most expensive player of the IPL auction and he repaid the faith shown – taking 12 wickets in 14 games and hitting 146 runs. He is one of the most exciting players in world cricket and should fly off the shelf.
Kagiso Rabada: The leading wicket-taker of the 2020 competition and seasoned international, Kagiso Rabada is the kind of player that gets onlookers out of their seats. Previously with the Mumbai Indians, Rabada should fetch a steep price to those interested in his services.
Why May India U19 World Cup-Winning Players Miss Out On Auction?
The Indian Premier League is the holy grail for the best young players to showcase their talents , but some bureaucratic rules coming in are preventing India’s best young talents from appearing at this year’s tournament.
Despite winning the Under-19 World Cup in impressive fashion over England, at least eight of them will be out of contention for a pick in the auction.
Any players that do not have domestic cricket experience – that’s at least one game in a first-class match or List A game – or under the age of 19 are not allowed to represent any franchise.
The rule means fans will miss out on the chance to see into the future of Indian cricket, with the following likely to miss out: wicket-keeper Dinesh Bana, India’s under-19 vice-captain and batsman Shaik Rasheed, left-arm pacer Ravi Kumar, all-rounders Nishant Sindhu and Siddarth Yadav, opener Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Manav Parakh and Garv Sangwan.
They could be auction picks to look out for in the future.
