IPL Auction 2019: Best pick by each franchise 

With just over a month to go for the 12th season of the popular T20 league, almost all Indian Premier League franchises have come out of the auction with strong squads. The auction for the upcoming season of IPL took place on December 18 at Jaipur. As many as 351 players went under the hammer. Among those, 60 players were sold to the franchises.

The IPL franchises acquired some steal and had to spend more money on some players. Star players like Lasith Malinga and Yuvraj Singh were bought at just their base price.

As expected, Jaydev Unadkat induced a bidding war between the franchises and was picked by Rajasthan Royals for a whopping amount of INR 8.4 crores. Varun Chakravarthy, a mystery spinner from Tamil Nadu who could trouble the opposition with a lot of variations, was bought by Kings XI Punjab for a massive amount of INR 8.4 crores.

Each and every franchise went for certain players who could be their potential match-winners. In this segment, let us go through each team's most valuable pick from the auction.

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#8 Mumbai Indians - Anmolpreet Singh (INR 80 Lakhs)

Anmolpreet Singh

Mumbai Indians is known for producing young talents as they were the reason behind Hardik Pandya, Krunal Pandya, and Jasprit Bumrah's success. In the IPL Auction 2019, Anmolpreet Singh, a hard-hitting batsman from Punjab, was bought for INR 80 lakh. He was a part of India's World Cup winning team in 2018.

He was the leading scorer for Punjab with 753 runs in five games in Ranji Trophy 2017-18. His consistent performances in the domestic circuit earned him a spot in India's A squad in 2018. Even though his T20 numbers have not been up to the mark, he could score at a raw pace. In his List A career, he has scored 537 runs in 9 games at an average of about 60.

#7 Sunrisers Hyderabad - Jonny Bairstow (2.2 crores)

Jonny Bairstow

Sunrisers Hyderabad released some of their top performers ahead of the auction. However, they have made a strong move when they opted to pick England's wicket-keeper batsman. Jonny Bairstow, who was bought for INR 2.2 crore, could be an asset to any team in the limited-overs, especially in the T20 format. He will provide great balance to the team.

Bairstow, who could keep the wickets, has the ability to move anywhere round in the batting line-up. He is currently in great form for his country. Thus far, the right-handed batsman has featured in 96 T20 games and accumulated 1649 runs at a staggering strike-rate of about 130. He also has a T20 century to his name.

Over the years, they lack a hard-hitting batsman in the middle-order and Bairstow could be the answer to this problem. This man will carry a lot of expectations from the team as well as the fans.

#6 Chennai Super Kings - Mohit Sharma (INR 5 crores)

Mohit Sharma

Chennai Super Kings have retained their core players for the upcoming season of the Indian Premier League. They just needed two Indian players to complete the 25-member squad. During the IPL Auction 2019, the franchise had tried to buy some Indian pacers and got Mohit Sharma for a massive amount of INR 5 crores. They also bought Ruturaj Gaikwad for his base price of INR 20 lakh.

Mohit Sharma is undoubtedly their best pick from the auction. The right-arm pacer could provide early breakthroughs in the power-play overs and has the ability to bowl the off-side yorker in the death overs.

Mohit, who represented CSK in 2013, 2014 and 2015, has bagged the purple cap in the 2014 IPL season. In the IPL, he has played 84 games and taken 90 wickets at an average of 26.64 and an economy of about 8 with the best bowling figure of 4 for 14.

#5 Delhi Capitals - Colin Ingram (INR 6.4 crores)

Colin Ingram

Delhi Capitals have released almost half of their squad ahead of the IPL Auction 2019. They surprised everyone by releasing the hard-hitters like Glenn Maxwell, Colin Munro, Jason Roy and many more. During the IPL auction, they bought Axar Patel, Hanuma Vihari, Colin Ingram, Ishant Sharma and a couple of uncapped players. But, their 'most valuable pick' from the auction would be South Africa's wicket-keeper batsman, Colin Ingram.

He has been in great form of his life in the shortest format of the game. The left-hander is currently playing the T20 leagues across the globe. In the PSL 2018, he has scored 243 runs at a massive strike-rate of 140. He also scored 209 runs in 9 games that he featured in Afghanistan Premier League at a strike-rate of 139.18. He is expected to take up the middle-order spot in the batting order.

#4 Kolkata Knight Riders - Anrich Nortje (INR 20 Lakhs)

Anrich Nortje

Dinesh Karthik's Kolkata Knight Riders bought 8 players at the auction and have a squad of 21 players, including eight overseas players to choose from going into IPL 2019. They went for Carlos Brathwaite, Lockie Ferguson but their best pick was South Africa's fast bowler, Anrich Nortje.

The tall pacer from South Africa could bowl toe-crushing yorkers at a very high pace. He has all the potential in the world to become one of the greats of the game. He has been in great touch in the domestic cricket. He has taken 162 and 41 wickets in 41 FC and 25 List-A games respectively.

He also was in good form during the first edition of MSL as he picked up 8 wickets in just three games before being ruled out of the remainder of the tournament. So far, the right-arm pacer has played 12 T20s and scalped 19 wickets at a healthy average of about 19 and an economy of 6.47. He is arguably a great addition to the Kolkata side.

#3 Royal Challengers Bangalore - Shivam Dube (INR 5 crores)

Shivam Dube

Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) went on to pick a Mumbai all-rounder, Shivam Dube, who is their best pick at the auction. Shivam Dube, who could bowl medium-pace, is one of the big hitters in the domestic arena. In 2018, he became a dependable batsman for Mumbai and also improved as a bowler. He played a crucial role for Mumbai in the Vijay Hazare Trophy 2018.

He also smashed Pravin Tambe for five sixes in an over in the Mumbai T20 league. Shivam Dube did the same in the ongoing Ranji Trophy against Baroda's Swapnil Singh. So far, Dube, who has played 6 first-class matches, scalped 22 wickets and scored 567 runs at an average of 22 and 63 respectively.

He also has good numbers in the shortest format of the game as he has taken 10 wickets and scored 189 runs in 13 games. He can clear the ropes with ease and provide crucial breakthroughs and would be a perfect middle-order batsman for the Bangalore side.

#2 Rajasthan Royals - Oshane Thomas (INR 1.1 crores)

Oshane Thomas

The 21-year-old pacer, Oshane Thomas is a great addition to the Rajasthan squad. He is known for bowling at a brisk pace, generating speeds up to 150 kph. Thomas, the young sensation from the West Indies, could trouble the oppositions with his raw pace and bouncers. He finished the CPL 2018 tournament as the highest wicket-taker among the pacers.

His impressive performances in the domestic cricket earned him a spot in the national team. During the tour of India in November 2018, he troubled the Indian batsmen, especially Shikhar Dhawan and Rohit Sharma. He dismissed Dhawan thrice on the tour of India.

So far, the right-arm pacer has played 18 T20s and scalped 27 wickets at an impressive average of 20.22 and an economy of about 8. Along with Jofra Archer, the Jamaican can disturb the oppositions in the upcoming season of the IPL

#1 Kings XI Punjab - Nicholas Pooran (INR 4.2 crores)

Nicholas Pooran

Kings XI Punjab have released more than 10 players ahead of the IPL Auction 2019. As they were short of a professional wicket-keeper batsman last season, they opted to buy a West Indies' destructive wicket-keeper batsman, Nicholas Pooran. He came into limelight when he destroyed the opponent bowlers with his hard-hitting skills.

He was the highest run-scorer of the first season of the T10 league with 324 runs in 9 games at a thundering strike-rate of 245.45, including 21 fours and 33 sixes. In the CPL 2018, the left-handed batsman accumulated 267 runs in 10 games at an average of 33 and a strike-rate of 144.32.

BCCI might give KL Rahul a rest ahead of the important World Cup tournament. In that case, Pooran, who will act as a wicket-keeper, can open the innings along with Chris Gayle or Mayank Agarwal to provide a flying starts.