IPL 2020: 5 openers who can start bidding wars

IPL Auctions would be upon us in a couple of days’ time. The world of cricket would be keenly looking at which players go to which franchise for how much price. IPL Auctions have thrown up some huge surprises where big names have gone unsold and some unknown rookies have made it big with multiple teams getting into a war of sorts to acquire certain players.

Come December 19^th, 2019 it’s all about finding the perfect team combination for each franchise. Apart from Chennai Super Kings (CSK) and Mumbai Indians (MI) who seem to already have most bases covered, other teams would be eying the players’ auction to find players who can complete their team and make them stronger.

The auction is where all the brainstorming starts for a team. IPL Auction has been the talk of the town every season. From owners to players and especially the fans- everyone is excited to see which team gets which player and at what cost. While it’s fun for the fans, owners really have a hard time deciding what would be the best combination for their team and which players will fit perfectly in that combination.

Though all the teams have retained most of their pivotal players, still the auction list carries some heavy names who could start a bidding war amongst the owners. Here are the 5 openers who can start bidding wars this players auction:

Tom Banton (England)

Tom Banton made his T20 debut for Somerset in July 2017. The right-handed opening batsman has played 17 T20 matches for his county where he has amassed 591 runs at an impressive average of 39.40. The wicketkeeper-batsman has smashed one century and four half-centuries in his short T20 career at a strike rate of 154.30.

He has also proved his mettle behind the stumps by taking six catches and three stumpings. Franchises will look to rope in the Englishman to strengthen their squads and it is believed that MI and CSK are favourites to procure his services.

It won’t be surprising to see other franchises get on a bidding war to get Tom Banton in their ranks as not only is he an explosive batsman who can teat into attacks from the word go, he is a batsman who can keep the wickets too.

Chris Lynn (Australia)

Chris Lynn is one of the big names who was surprisingly released by Kolkata Knight Riders. Lynn showed his ability as a T20 batsman in the recently-concluded Abu Dhabi T10 league. The Australian scored runs consistently for KKR in the last three seasons. However, KKR had other plans and there’s no doubt that Lynn will garner a lot of attention in the IPL auction this month. He is likely to draw some massive bids.

Lynn made a statement of sorts amassing more than 450+ runs in the recently concluded Abu Dhabi T10 league where he clearly showed everyone how capable and destructive, he can be as an attacking opening batsman for any franchise. It would come as no surprise if he finds multiple teams bidding big bucks for him as he possesses that match-winning talent to go with his current form.

Lynn spent 6 years in Kolkata and scored 1280 runs in 41 matches at a strike rate of 140.65. Lynn is one of the most destructive openers in world cricket at the moment as he was the Man of the series of the recently concluded T10 Abu Dhabi League. It is expected that KKR might use the RTM card or bid for Lynn to get him for a cheaper price in the auction.

Jason Roy (England)

The explosive English opener is one of the most explosive batsmen in world cricket at the moment. He is a match-winner which can make him a prized possession for any franchise. You need a good opening batsman in the T20 format, who can lay the foundation of your batting line-up and Roy is the best man to do it. In the 2019 World Cup, he was one of the prime reasons for England’s successful campaign and teams like KKR, who have released their openers might go for Roy to fill the big shoes.

The teams are likely to show the most interest in acquiring the services of Roy would be RCB, RR and CSK. Bangalore need someone who can lethal and destructive at the top of the order. With their middle-order comprising of Virat Kohli, ABD and Moeen Ali they would be eying Jason Roy to further strengthen their batting line-up.

Another team that may break their purse to ensure the English opener makes it to their setup are Rajasthan Royals. They need someone who can dominate oppositions from the word-go. With a reasonably solid middle-order, getting a solid, world-class opener in their side would be of the highest priority.

Yashasvi Jaiswal (India)

Yashasvi Jaiswal, born in Suriya, Uttar Pradesh, the son of a shopkeeper and a teacher, has played for India’s Under-19 and Mumbai’s Ranji Trophy teams and was player of the tournament at last year’s Under-19 Asia Cup. With a burgeoning reputation as a promising all-rounder, the slender, 6ft-tall boy is already having greatness thrust upon him.

Playing in his debut season for Mumbai at the Vijay Hazare trophy recently, Jaiswal became the youngest batsman at the age of seventeen to score a List-A double century. Year after year, there are multiple batsmen who steal the limelight in the Indian domestic circuit. However, it is not often that a 17-year-old does. A certain Jaiswal has done that. The youngster has well and truly forced everybody to sit up and take notice.

RCB have always been a star-studded team. However, they never seem to have the results go their way. Even now, the team revolves around megastars like Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers. Moreover, most of the onus is on the duo to perform.

With Watson ageing and his form dipping, and Rayudu’s indifferent form and decision-making, Yashasvi Jaiswal could be a great addition to the CSK squad. The youngster from Mumbai can open the batting and solve a few issues. He could be a real find this season.

Aaron Finch (Australia)

 Having played for seven different teams in the world’s most popular tournament – the Indian Premier League (IPL) – Aaron Finch might be a first choice for the franchisees who are looking for a destructive and attacking opener in the upcoming season.

The limited-overs captain for Australia, Finch in T20 Internationals has scored nearly 1900 runs in 58 matches with two scintillating hundreds and 11 half-centuries. The thing to notice here is his strike-rate, which is above 150, and that is quite remarkable and impressive.

When it comes to IPL, Finch has played 75 matches and scored over 1700 runs with 13 fifties. This is enough to explain that the southpaw is quite familiar with the sub-continent conditions. He also has the ability to take the game away from the opposition. He has worked on his fitness and has sorted out some issues related to his technique which has bought him fine returns in the past 12-15 months.

It won’t come as a surprise if multiple franchises end up on a bidding war to buy Aaron Finch- explosive opening batsmen and an international captain.