2017 IPL auction: 5 potential surprise buys in the auction

#3 Rashid Khan

Rashid is currently ranked fifth in the ICC T20I rankings

It won’t be a big surprise if Afghanistan’s Rashid Khan is picked by any of the IPL teams in the upcoming auction. Rashid is one of the better utility players in T20s and ticks all the boxes that are needed to be successful in this format.

The 19-year-old leggie has scalped 31 T20I wickets in 21 matches at an extraordinary average of 16 and an economy of just over 6, numbers that are too good in this format.

He is also someone who is equally good with the bat as is known to play some cameos down the order for his team. It is too early to come to a conclusion about his batting in T20Is as he has played just 6 innings in which he averages 31.50 with a strike-rate of 150.

But, his numbers in the ODI format will give an idea of how dangerous he is with the bat. He has 261 ODI runs in 14 innings at an average of 23 with a strike-rate just over 95, which is not bad for someone who bats at no. 8.

He was also the second highest wicket taker in the 2016 World T20 (taking the qualifiers into account). Rashid is currently ranked fifth in the ICC T20I rankings and is above the likes of Sunil Narine, R Ashwin, Mustafizur Rahman etc.