IPL 2018 Auction: Five major talking points

The auction strategies of KKR and CSK

Stephen Fleming

The Knight Riders entered the auctions having retained Sunil Narine and Andre Russell. Many expected that they would buy Gautam Gambhir back using their RTM card. But KKR management had other ideas.

They refused to retain their former skipper when given an opportunity, as they wanted to develop a new squad under a new captain. The side bought several prominent names like Chris Lynn, Mitchell Starc and Mitchell Johnson. It remains to be seen whether the new skipper can be an ideal replacement for Gambhir.

But it will be arduous to fill in the shoes of the most successful KKR player, under whom the side won two tiles. Coming to the strategy of the CSK, the majority of the players bought by them are well into their thirties.

Players like Shane Watson, Faf du Plessis, Dwayne Bravo and Imran Tahir have rich experience in the shortest format. If they are at their best on the given day, then age might just be a number for these players. It continues to be seen whether they can break the age-barrier and perform to their full potential.