IPL 2018: Top 5 Indian players who will attract big bids in the 2018 IPL auction

The IPL auction for the 2018 edition will take place on January 27 and 28 in Bengaluru.

The Indian Premier League (IPL) has been a hot bed for top name Indian players to get multi-crore bids in the auction. Franchisees have been known to bid big if they really need a player in their team. Indian players also attract big bidding because they can play a full season, barring injury.

This IPL 2018 auction will see many big names in the auction, who were not retained by their franchises and we have shortlisted 5 such names.

Here are the shortlisted Top 5 Indian players:

Manish Pandey

Manish Pandey |  IANS

Manish Pandey has been one of the best young players from India in the IPL since its inception. The first and youngest Indian to make a century in IPL in 2009 edition, Manish found his mark with the Kolkata Knight Riders team.

No one can forget his innings of 94 in the finals of IPL 2014 when KKR chased 199 to defeat KXIP to win their second IPL title. Pandey is a brilliant fielder anywhere in the field and a batsman that can grind out runs and hit the big shots when needed.

Though he can be retained by KKR using the RTM card, Pandey will be on the must-have lists of many other franchises too in the upcoming 2018 edition.


Shikhar Dhawan

SRH opener Shikhar Dhawan

Opener Shikhar Dhawan had found a good home in SRH, a franchise he captained too. But SRH have not retained Dhawan for the upcoming IPL 2018, going for David Warner and Bhuvneshwar Kumar instead. Shikhar Dhawan will definitely on their retention list, when he comes up in the 2018 auction.

An aggressive opener, Dhawan likes to take on the bowler and has the ability to clear the ropes and hit boundaries. Dhawan was one of the biggest reasons; SRH won the IPL in 2016, as he absorbed all the pressure to let David Warner go after the bowling in that season.

Dhawan can be a handy opener for any team, who can afford his base price, if SRH do not retain him using the RTM card. Dhawan is a safe fielder in outfield and can field in slips as well.


R Ashwin

R Ashwin was super successful for CSK

Local Chennai boy R Ashwin was not retained by Chennai Super Kings, as they went for MS Dhoni, Suresh Raina and Ravindra Jadeja. Ashwin will now have to find a new home for the IPL 2018, as CSK cannot retain him in the auction, since they have retained three capped Indian players.

Ashwin missed last year’s IPL due to sports hernia and his performance for India in the limited overs over the last year or so haven’t been very good. He has not played T20 cricket for India in last year and that is something that made CSK choose Jadeja in the retention, instead of Ashwin.

Ashwin has a brilliant cricket mind and can be a good leader for a team like Delhi Daredevils, who definitely require a quick thinking, frontline spinner; who can perform as well.


Gautam Gambhir

Gautam Gambhir won IPL twice for KKR in 2012 and 2014

Gautam Gambhir was put in auction for IPL 2018, as his franchise KKR didn’t retain him. The two time IPL winning captain Gambhir will now be looking for a new team for the upcoming IPL. Apart from being a very good captain, Gambhir has also proven to be a very good opener, as he has anchored the innings many times for KKR.

He will be a great addition to a team like Punjab or his home team of Delhi, where he started playing IPL for. Delhi Daredevils will be happy to buy Gambhir, who now has more captaincy experience and better acumen for picking players in auction. He can really lift the spirits of Delhi team who finished in the bottom last year.


Yuvraj Singh

Yuvraj Singh was the most expensive player in IPL before been surpassed by Virat Kohli

Yuvraj Singh was the most expensive player in two of the IPL auctions back to back with bids of Rs 16 crore and Rs 14 crore by RCB and DD. However, his performances in IPL have never been up to mark. Yuvraj Singh is perhaps one of India’s best T20 players with a plethora of records to his name.

But ever since he has returned from his cancer treatment, he has not been the same Yuvraj we are used to seeing. He can still hit the ball a long way and might play a big innings, but all of that has become a rarity to watch. But his reputation as a dangerous T20 player precedes him in the auction and Yuvraj will definitely attract a big bid from one of the franchises that need a quality hitter in their team.  

 
 

By Jatin Sharma - 23 Jan, 2018

    Share Via