IPL 2022: Aakash Chopra predicts five most expensive bowlers in the mega auction

The IPL 2022 mega auction is set to be held on February 12 and 13 in Bengaluru. Many players in India and across the globe have expressed their interest in being a part of the much-awaited event by registering their names. The 15th edition of the IPL will also be a 10-team affair with the inclusion of two new franchises- Lucknow and Ahmedabad and is reportedly set to kick off from March 27.

With the IPL 2022 just around the corner, cricketer-turned-cricket pundit Aakash Chopra has picked his five expensive Indian bowlers at the mega auction and has surprisingly excluded medium-pacer Harshal Patel who had bagged the Purple Cap last season. It needs to be noted that Harshal’s tally of 32 wickets is the joint-highest in the history of the tournament along with Caribbean all-rounder Dwayne Bravo who had registered the same number of scalps in the 2013 season.

Chopra includes young pacers in his list

While interacting in a video posted on his official YouTube channel, Aakash Chopra named his five most expensive bowlers in the IPL 2022 auction in descending order as he picked the likes of emerging pacer Prasidh Krishna, promising speedster Avesh Khan and leggie Rahul Chahar. The top two spots, however, went to leggie Yuzvendra Chahal and bowling all-rounder Deepak Chahar.

The former Indian Test opener heaped praise on Prasidh Krishna’s height as well as his outstanding point of release for which he took the fifth spot in his analysis. He then added that Avesh has had two phenomenal IPL seasons while Rahul is a ‘proven customer’. At the same time, Chopra also gave a special mention to Chahal’s potential and called him ‘brilliant’ while saying that Deepak is known for his ability to pick up wickets with the new ball.

“At no.2, I have kept Yuzvendra Chahal. He is a gun bowler although his numbers might have gone down for the last little while. The second half of the last IPL was outstanding. He has pedigree, performance, potential – he is brilliant”, said Aakash Chopra.

“At no.1, I have kept Deepak Chahar. He is a wicket-taker with the new ball. You don’t see any other Indian bowler like that, he is a bank in the first three overs, you break the back of the opponent. He is alright at the death but you can manage with him”, he added.

Despite playing an instrumental role in RCB making back-to-back playoff appearances along with winning the Purple Cap, Harshal Patel was released by the franchise and will now be going under the hammer in the upcoming IPL 2022 auction.