We did go through the Top 10 players to watch out for in the upcoming IPL auction, which is set to be held in Chennai on the 18th of February, starting at 3 pm IST. Though a number of numbers are available for the auctions. We need to keep in mind where the franchises stand ahead of the auctions.
Few of the teams have chosen to stick to their existing squad and have released only a few players. While some of the teams have released as many as 17 players. Cricwizz, today brings you the list of the teams and their available purse and slots for the upcoming auction.
1) Mumbai Indians
The 5-time title winners- Mumbai Indians would not be too keen to make many changes to their squad as they have been dominating the tournament for quite some time now. With a chance to win a hat-trick of title, the franchise has decided to retain 18 of their players. Which leaves them 8 slots to choose from in the upcoming auction.
2) Chennai Super Kings
The Men in Yellow are another team who have showed faith in their existing squad. The team led by former Indian skipper MS Dhoni have retained 18 of their players leaving just 7 slots to fill in. They also stand joint with the Sunrisers Hyderabad in the availability of the foreign slot with just one player to choose from. Do stay tuned with Cricwizz to find out the players CSK would be eyeing in place of Shane Watson, who announced his retirement from the tournament.
3) Rajasthan Royals
Royals made some bold decisions ahead of the auctions. The highlight being the release of their skipper Steve Smith. The Australian was seen having a rough patch in the last season and did not show any improving signs in the series against India. He is replaced by the wicket-keeper batsman Sanju Samson, who recently had a good season for Kerala as captain in the Syed Mushtaq Trophy. Royals have the third-highest purse availability with 34.85 crores and with 8 slots to choose from. Do expect some big names to be picked up.
4) Kolkata Knight Riders
Kolkata Knight Riders are likely to have a quiet auction. The 2-time champions have retained 17 of their existing players and that leaves them with 8 slots with a cushion of 2 overseas players to choose from. But, given their available purse is only 10.75 crores. We do not expect the KKR to be chasing the big money players and are only likely to strengthen their reserve.
5) Kings Xl Punjab
Kings Xl Punjab have the highest purse value with 53.20 crores to spend, Punjab could be having a really busy auction this time around. The franchise have decided to release a few of the big names like Gleen Maxwell, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Jimmy Neesham, and Sheldon Cottrell. But have retained key players Chris Gayle, Mayank Agarwal, and Nicholas Pooran. The team which is already star-studded is only expected to even get better with this auction where they do have a huge chunk to spend on.
6) Royal Challengers Bangalore
Another team that will be a busy time is the Royal Challengers Bangalore, who have only retained 12 of their players. With 13 slots to fill in, which includes 4 foreign players. We do expect RCB to chase the big fishes. RCB are one of the few teams that have released many of their key players which includes the likes of Chris Morris, Moeen Ali, Dale Steyn, Aaron Finch, and Umesh Yadav. For that reason, we do expect RCB to feature a revamped team for the upcoming season.
7) Delhi Capitals
The 2020 IPL finalists- Delhi Capitals have shown great intent in the last two seasons courtesy of their Australian coach-Ricky Pointing and young skipper Shreyas Iyer. Capitals have retained as many as 19 players and just 6 slots to fill in, which will consist of 2 foreign players. They have a purse value of close to 13 crores and looks likely the franchise will be using this auction to strengthen their bowling attack.
8) Sunrisers Hyderabad
Sunrisers stand joint with Kolkata Knight Riders for the lowest available purse, with just 10.75 crores to spend on. Sunrisers though have shown great faith in their existing squad retaining 22 of their players. Which stands to be the highest in terms of players retained. With only 3 spots to fill in. Do not be surprised if you do not find SRH in the bidding wars.
This concludes our insight into the available purses of the teams and the slots available. Which franchise do you think will have the best outcome in the auction? Stay tuned with Cricwizz, as we bring you more on the IPL 2021 auctions.
