IPL 2021: 3 Teams that can pick Moeen Ali in the auction

England’s left-handed batsman and off-spinner Moeen Ali is all set to go under the hammer in the auction for the upcoming 2020 edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL), set to take place on February 18 in Chennai. Moeen will be a valuable addition to any T20 side in the world as he is capable of rattling the opposition batsmen with his ferocious off-breaks along with scoring runs while playing anywhere in the batting order. 

Thus far, since his T20 debut for England in March 2014 against West Indies, Ali has featured in 34 T20 Internationals scoring 392 runs at an average of 17.00 and strike rate of 134.7. He has also scalped 17 wickets at an economy rate of 8.59. As far as IPL is concerned, Moeen had made his debut for Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in the 2018 edition and has represented the franchise in 19 IPL matches amassing 309 runs at 20.6 and picking 10 wickets at an economy of 7.13.

The celebrated all-rounder will once again go under the hammer as the Bangalore outfit ended their 3-year association with Ali and released him ahead of IPL 2021. Registered at a base price of INR 2 crores, Moeen Ali can attract some fine bidders in the upcoming auction in Chennai and can earn a staggering amount of money.

In the article, let’s take a look at 3 teams that can pick Moeen Ali for IPL 2021:

1. Kings XI Punjab

Going into the auction, the IPL franchise Kings XI Punjab (KXIP) will be the most excited one out of all the eight franchises as they have the biggest purse balance of a whopping INR 53.2 crore under their belt. After releasing the likes of Glenn Maxwell, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, and K Gowtham from their squad, KXIP can target Moeen Ali to handle their spin department alongside Ravi Bishnoi. 

In addition, one of the main reasons behind KXIP’s torrid run in IPL 2020 was their over-dependence on the opening partnership of Mayank Agarwal and KL Rahul. The players in the middle-order failed to positively contribute to the scoreboard and emerged as the biggest disappointments for the franchise. 

Thus, roping in Moeen Ali can solve Punjab’s problems of batting in the middle-order too as Ali is known for his finishing abilities with the willow.

2. Rajasthan Royals

Rajasthan Royals (RR) had a horrendous outing in the 2020 edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) as they finished as the wooden-spooners on the points table with just 12 points under their belt in 14 games. While there are many loopholes in the squad, one of the major concerns for the franchise was the unavailability of an able all-rounder. 

After the failure of the top 4 or 5 batsmen in the line-up, there was no one in the middle-order who could emerge as the wrecker-in-chief for the team and take them home. While Rahul Tewatia was a surprise package for the Royals as an able all-rounder, he also failed to keep going throughout the league after not getting any significant support from other players down the order. 

Thus RR can participate in the bidding war for the English all-rounder Moeen Ali as he will not only provide another bowling option to newly-appointed skipper Sanju Samson but will also help in adding runs to the scoreboard after a collapse of the top-order.

 3. Chennai Super Kings

Chennai Super Kings (CSK) were one of the most-talked-about franchises in the 2020 edition of the T20 extravaganza but for all the wrong reasons. IPL 2020 was the first time when the Super Kings failed to qualify for the playoffs in their 10-year history in the league. Under the leadership of MS Dhoni, they finished at seventh position with 12 points. 

The Yellow Army was put under major scrutiny by the fans and cricket analysts for their poor run-rate, especially in the death overs. Though the team got a good start while batting many times, the batsman down the order failed to capitalize on the lead and couldn’t keep up with the strike rate. 

Roping in Moeen Ali for IPL 2021 can do good to three-time champion CSK as the all-rounder boasts of having a stunning strike rate of 158.5 while batting in the T20 championship. Along with that, he can act as a suitable replacement for their regular spinner Piyush Chawla, who was released by the management ahead of IPL 2021.