IPL 2019: 3 Indian players who are heavily relying on the tournament for a national call-up

IPL 2019 is just around the corner, and with the auction done and dusted, all the franchises are ready with their squads. There were a lot of surprise picks in the auction as Jaydev Unadkat was again the biggest buy; everyone looked on in amazement as it was Rajasthan Royals again who bought him for a whopping 8.4 CR.

Players like Unadkat are the ones who will be under the scanner this time around as a lot of big stars might miss the second leg of the league due to national duty. These players have had a few chances to represent their country, but their inconsistent performances have led to their ouster. But they can make their case strong again with some good performances in the IPL.

Let's have look at the players who are heavily relying on IPL for their national selection.

#3 Washington Sundar (RCB)

Washington Sundar is made a spectacular start to his career, bowling at an unbelievable economy of close to 5 and that too in the power play overs. Sundar earned his first IPL contract for the Pune franchise in 2017 after a splendid TNPL (Tamil Nadu Premier League) season.

He played under the captaincy of Steve Smith and proved his worth whenever he got the opportunity. He won the Man of the Match in the first qualifier where he almost single-handedly took RPS to the final.

Sundar made his debut shortly after that and played a major role in India's victory in the Nidahas Trophy, where he bowled beautifully at an economy of under 6. He missed the England tour due to an injury and has been in and out of the squad since then.

Sundar is an economical bowler and a hard-hitting batsman, who can work wonders for any team. He will be one of the players who would be relying heavily on the IPL for another chance to cement his place in the national team.

#2 Jaydev Unadkat

South Africa v India - T20 International

Jaydev Unadkat burst onto the scene after he became the most expensive Indian player at the 2018 IPL auctions. He was bought by the Rajasthan Royals for 11.5 crore, which was probably too much for an inexperienced campaigner.

That price earned him a call-up for the South Africa tour. He didn't do anything special on the occasion as he bowled at a disastrous economy of 10.

The selectors showed faith in him again and recalled him for the Nidahas Trophy. He bagged more wickets this time but the runs kept leaking.

This time around he comes into the IPL, still as the most expensive player but a more motivated one. The 2019 season can either work wonders for him or can hang his career on a thread.

#1 KL Rahul

England v India - 2nd Vitality International T20

KL Rahul would probably never forget the year 2018 because it gave him some of his best memories and then even the worst of them. He had a splendid IPL, and looked primed to dominate international cricket, but it all went downhill after that.

A poor Asia Cup and Australian tour have led to Rahul's ouster from the team. And if that was not enough, Rahul was even banned a couple of weeks ago for his sexist comments on the show Koffee with Karan.

Rahul has always been considered a talented batsman, but his consistency has been a perennial issue. He gets starts but then throws them away, and keeps finding new ways to get out.

Rahul is currently playing for the 'A' team. If he wants to make his name big again in the international circuit, he needs some spectacular performances in this year's IPL to make his case strong.