IPL 2022: 3 teams that might target Shikhar Dhawan in mega auction

Shikhar Dhawan has been one of the prolific openers in the IPL history with excellent numbers over the years and the last two years have been especially good for the Delhi lad. He is approaching the 6000-run mark in his IPL career having played for various franchises over the years after making his debut in IPL for the Delhi side in 2008.  He was part of the Mumbai Indians, Sunrisers Hyderabad franchises and returned to his home side in IPL 2019 in the trade window.

Since then the 36-year-old has been a different player with the number of shots he has brought into his game. He was earlier criticised for his strike rate but managed to break the barriers with consecutive centuries in IPL 2020 and took the Delhi side to their first IPL finals. There is no doubt that he is still one of the swiftest runners between the wickets and at the peak of his powers.

The Delhi Capitals retained Prithvi Shaw, Rishabh Pant, Axar Patel and Anrich Nortje ahead of IPL 2022 auction and Dhawan’s rejection did turn up the eyebrows. However, he will now be up in the mega auction in the Marquee list for a base price of 2 crores and there could be bidding of wars for the left-hander because of his ability to break free in the powerplay and his consistent performances in the last two seasons of IPL.

3 teams that might target Shikhar Dhawan:

1. Chennai Super Kings

The defending champions Chennai Super Kings have gone for experience always and Dhawan will definitely be in their plans when it comes to adding to their Indian contingent. He provides a left-hand option at the top and can open the innings with the upcoming sensation Ruturaj Gaikwad.

Skipper MS Dhoni definitely knows the value of a seasoned campaigner as he had the likes of Suresh Raina in the past and the same could be expected in this auction as well. Chennai Super Kings have retained Ravindra Jadeja(16 Cr), MS Dhoni(12 Cr), Moeen Ali(8 Cr) and Ruturaj Gaikwad(6 Cr) ahead of IPL 2022 auction.

They have missed out on the option of Faf Du Plessis who has served them well at the top. While Faf is expected to hold up an overseas position, it might be wise for the CSK side to target the Indian veteran. Dhawan is one of the excellent players of spin as well, and he can become a potent option at Chennai once the tournament shifts back to the original venues.