After the announcement of player retention and draft picks, all eyes are now on the IPL 2022 mega auction, scheduled for February 12 and 13.

A total of 590 cricketers will go under the hammer during the two-day mega auction. The list incorporates 228 capped, 355 uncapped and 7 Associate players.

With less than two weeks to go for the bidding war, former India cricketer-turned-commentator Aakash Chopra predicted the player he thinks will be the 'most expensive' among openers. His pick is none other than former Mumbai Indians (MI) batter Ishan Kishan.

"In my opinion, Ishan Kishan will be the most expensive opener at the IPL 2022 Auction. He could actually be the most expensive player, one out of him or Shreyas Iyer could be the most expensive. I won't be surprised if it is Ishan Kishan," Chopra said in a video on his YouTube channel.

Furthermore, Aakash stressed on the importance of swashbuckling openers in the shortest format of the game.

"The openers make or break the game. They have the ability because they have a lot of time. The problem in T20 is that you don't have time, it gets over very quickly. In such a case if you are an opener, you can decide the tempo of the match. KL Rahul, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Quinton de Kock, Shikhar Dhawan - you have seen a lot of players like that," he said.

"Ruturaj Gaikwad retained, Virat Kohli retained, KL Rahul drafted, Mayank Agarwal retained, Venkatesh Iyer retained, Rohit Sharma retained, Shubman Gill, Yashasvi - got my point, right."

While Aakash Chopra tipped Ishan Kishan to be the most-expensive opener overall, he reckons South Africa’s Quinton de Kock could attract the biggest bid for an overseas opener.

"Ishan Kishan, Devdutt Padikkal, Quinton de Kock - I am saying the most expensive overseas opener, David Warner, Chris Lynn, Jason Roy, Jonny Bairstow - a lot of money is going to be spent. Ambati Rayudu can open, Shikhar Dhawan, Robin Uthappa, Faf du Plessis - there are a lot of openers who will present themselves as options."

David Warner, Jason Roy, and Jonny Bairstow are some other overseas openers who are likely to attract huge bids in the upcoming auction.