IPL 2022 - Five Overseas Batters Franchises could target in IPL 2022 Mega Auction
The Indian Premier League (IPL) will have ten teams in its 15th edition. There will be two new teams from this year. Lucknow Super Giants and Ahmedabad will be the two new teams. The other eight teams have released multiple players. According to the rules, IPL teams can retain three to four players to participate in the mega auction of the IPL 2022 season.
The mega auction is scheduled to be held on Saturday, February 12-13, 2022 in Bengaluru. The sources also say that this could be the last mega auction in the history of the Indian Premier League. So, all the ten franchises and team owners will look to buy quality players to form their respective teams.
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) plans to host IPL 2022 from March 27, 2022 till the last week of May. These matches are being intended to be played in Mumbai and Pune to restrict travel in times when there is incidence of rising Covid cases in India. It is also learned that this edition could also be shifted to South Africa if the Covid cases spike in India two months later. All the matches will be played behind closed doors if IPL 2022 is held in India.
In IPL, there have been many batting greats who have played in the past. With just 11 days to go for the mega auction, here are five overseas batters who can be targeted by the 10 IPL franchises in this bidding war. Read More: IPL 2022: Hardik Pandya, Rashid Khan, Shubman Gill to play for Ahmedabad
David Warner (Base Price of INR 2 Crore)
The list of bidding wars starts with David Warner. The dashing opener from Australia was sidelined by Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) in IPL 2021. Warner was removed from the captaincy role and the orange army did not retain him. Warner has scored the highest runs by an overseas player in IPL history. He has certainly been a consistent performer in the cash-rich league. But just one bad season allowed SRH to part ways with the Aussie opener.
David Warner was the man of the tournament in ICC T20 World Cup 2021. Warner guided Australia to win their first-ever World T20 title in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
IPL Career Summary of David Warner
Format | Mat | Inn | Runs | Ave | SR | 100s | 50s | HS |
IPL | 150 | 150 | 5449 | 41.6 | 139.97 | 4 | 50 | 126 |
IPL'21 | 8 | 8 | 195 | 24.37 | 101.73 | 0 | 2 | 57 |
Jonny Bairstow (Base Price of INR 1.5 Crore)
England opener Jonny Bairstow has had a sublime opening partnership run with David Warner for SRH. Bairstow was also not retained as a player for SRH just like his opening partner Warner. Bairstow is also a terrific opener in the T20I format for England.
Bairstow can be targeted by many franchises this season because of his wicketkeeping skills. Jonny also has the safest pair of hands behind the stumps. He is the wicketkeeper batter to watch out for in the upcoming mega auction of IPL 2022. Bairstow can be a vital pick because he can bat in the middle order and maintain the balance of the team. In Test matches and fifty-overs cricket, Jonny bats down the order for England. He could do the same for his new IPL franchise too.
IPL Career Summary of Jonny Bairstow
Format | Mat | Inn | Runs | Ave | SR | 100s | 50s | HS |
IPL | 28 | 28 | 1038 | 41.52 | 142.19 | 1 | 7 | 114 |
IPL'21 | 7 | 7 | 248 | 41.33 | 141.71 | 0 | 2 | 63* |
Quinton de Kock (Base Price of INR 2 Crore)
The Proteas wicketkeeper batter was the leading man in the Mumbai Indians lineup. Quinton de Kock and Rohit Sharma gave MI flying starts in the first six overs. MI ruled the powerplay overs mainly because of their openers. After retiring from Tests, De Kock looked good against India. He slammed 124 runs in the final ODI which allowed South Africa to win the one-day series by a 3-0 margin.
Quinton de Kock can be the X-factor for his franchise because he can demolish even good bowling attacks in the first six overs and he is also an excellent wicketkeeper. De Kock is pure class as an opening batter.
Format | Mat | Inn | Runs | Ave | SR | 100s | 50s | HS |
IPL | 77 | 77 | 2256 | 31.33 | 130.93 | 1 | 16 | 108 |
IPL'21 | 11 | 11 | 297 | 29.70 | 116.01 | 0 | 2 | 70* |
Faf du Plessis (Base Price of INR 2 Crore)
Another Proteas player who has been pivotal for his franchise, Chennai Super Kings (CSK) is former South Africa captain Faf du Plessis. But he wasn't retained by the yellow brigade. Du Plessis was the trump card in the CSK setup. Faf has got experience which could craft a youngster into a fantastic player. Du Plessis also delivered for CSK in crisis situations. The IPL 2020 season was disastrous for CSK. But Faf du Plessis still held his nerve and he was their highest run-scorer that season with 449 runs in 13 matches.
Faf du Plessis was part of IPL 2018 and 2021 seasons. He had given a strong foundation for the yellow army in those two title wins. He also groomed Ruturaj Gaikwad. CSK will look to bring Faf back because of his exceptional talent. But other franchises will also have an eye on this amazing Proteas cricketer. He will be an asset for them as well. After Warner and De Kock, Du Plessis might be considered a captaincy choice, maybe for his new IPL franchise.
IPL Career Summary of Faf du Plessis
Format | Mat | Inn | Runs | Ave | SR | 100s | 50s | HS |
IPL | 100 | 93 | 2395 | 34.94 | 131.08 | 0 | 22 | 96* |
IPL'21 | 16 | 16 | 633 | 45.21 | 138.20 | 0 | 6 | 95 |
Shimron Hetmyer (Base Price of INR 1.5 Crore)
This list ends with West Indies power-hitter Shimron Hetmyer. Hetmyer is good middle order batter for West Indies. Delhi Capitals bought him for INR 7.4 Crore for the IPL 2020 season.
He also played for the Delhi Capitals (DC) in the last season. Hetmyer showed the glimpse of his power-hitting abilities and did finish games for Delhi. Hetmyer accumulated 242 runs from 14 games at an average of 34.57 with a phenomenal strike rate of 168.05. Hetmyer can play the role of a finisher. He has all the shots in the book which could help the team reach a daunting score.
IPL Career Summary of Shimron Hetmyer
Format | Mat | Inn | Runs | Ave | SR | 100s | 50s | HS |
IPL | 31 | 29 | 517 | 25.85 | 151.16 | 0 | 2 | 75 |
IPL'21 | 14 | 13 | 242 | 34.57 | 168.05 | 0 | 1 | 73* |
The 15th season of the cash-rich league will likely kick off on March 27 in India.
Read More: Top 5 Indian bowlers that franchises would target in IPL mega-auction 2022