IPL Auction 2020: Team-wise analysis of likely strategies and potential acquisitions

A total of 332 players will go under the hammer at the IPL 2020 Auction on 19 December in Kolkata.

The final list comprises of 186 Indian players of whom 19 are capped, apart from 143 overseas players and 3 players from Associate Nations. Most of the franchises have decided to persist with their core, so a maximum of 73 players can be acquired at the auction.

Also see – BPL Points Table

With a mega auction looming in 2021, the teams would possibly prefer makeshift solutions for their existing combinations this time around instead of investing in long-term plans.

Let us look at each of the eight franchises and their potential acquisitions at the auction:

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Chennai Super Kings

CSK have yet again placed their trust on experienced and proven performers

Retained: MS Dhoni [c], Suresh Raina, Faf du Plessis*, Ambati Rayudu, Murali Vijay, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Shane Watson*, Dwayne Bravo*, Kedar Jadhav, Lungi Ngidi*, Ravindra Jadeja, Mitchell Santner*, Monu Kumar, N Jagadeesan, Harbhajan Singh, Karn Sharma, Imran Tahir*, Deepak Chahar, KM Asif.

Released: Mohit Sharma, Sam Billings, David Willey, Scott Kuggeleijn, Dhruv Shorey, Chaitanya Bishnoi

Available Auction Purse: INR 14.60 crore

Available Slots: 5 (Indian 3, Overseas 2)

Auction Strategy

CSK have believed in continuity since the inception of the league, and the story is no different for IPL 2020. Having retained as many as 20 players, their squad is virtually complete.

They have, however, released Mohit Sharma, Sam Billings and David Willey, and would need a backup Indian seamer, overseas batsman and an overseas seamer to plug the respective gaps. The Super Kings would also look for some young Indian batsmen.

Potential Acquisitions: Jaydev Unadkat, Andrew Tye, Ben Laughlin, Hanuma Vihari, Rahul Tripathi, Shahrukh Khan, Barinder Sran, Tom Banton, Alex Carey, Sam Curran, Lendl Simmons, Jalaj Saxena

Delhi Capitals

Can DC build on an impressive 2019 season?

Retained: Shreyas Iyer [c], Prithvi Shaw, Shikhar Dhawan, Rishabh Pant, Ishant Sharma, Amit Mishra, Avesh Khan, Sandeep Lamichhane*, Kagiso Rabada*, Keemo Paul*, Axar Patel, Harshal Patel

Traded In: Ravichandran Ashwin (from KXIP), Ajinkya Rahane (from RR), Mayank Markande (from MI)

Released: Chris Morris, Colin Ingram, B Ayyappa, Hanuma Vihari, Jalaj Saxena, Manjot Kalra, Nathu Singh, Ankush Bains, Colin Munro.

Traded Out: Trent Boult (to MI), Sherfane Rutherford (to MI), Jagadeesha Suchith (to KXIP), Rahul Tewatia (to RR), Mayank Markande (to RR)

Available Auction Purse: INR 27.85 crore

Available Slots: 11 (Indian 6, Overseas 5)

Auction Strategy

The Capitals have assembled a formidable Indian core, further augmented by the addition of Ravichandran Ashwin and Ajinkya Rahane during the transfer window. A solid Indian contingent at the top of the batting order grants them the option to aggressively target a marquee overseas finisher.

Also, since they have let go of Chris Morris and Trent Boult, they would also look for an overseas fast-bowling all-rounder and a gun overseas pacer.

Their healthy purse will allow them to pursue filling up these slots with their preferred picks, as they only need backups for the remaining roles.

Potential Acquisitions: James Neesham, Glenn Maxwell, Shimron Hetmyer, Eoin Morgan, JP Duminy, Chris Woakes, Marcus Stoinis, Pat Cummins, Sheldon Cottrell, James Pattinson, Mitchell Marsh, Ben Cutting, Laurie Evans, Manoj Tiwary, Dhruv Shorey, Lukman Meriwala

Kings XI Punjab

KXIP will go into the auction with the highest purse among all teams

Retained: KL Rahul, Chris Gayle*, Mayank Agarwal, Karun Nair, Sarfaraz Khan, Nicholas Pooran*, Mandeep Singh, Mohammed Shami, Mujeeb ur Rahman*, Arshdeep Singh, Hardus Viljoen*, Murugan Ashwin, Harpreet Brar, Darshan Nalkande

Traded In: Krishnappa Gowtham (from RR), Jagadeesha Suchith (from DC)

Released: David Miller, Andrew Tye, Sam Curran, Moises Henriques, Prabhsimran Singh, Agnivesh Ayachi, Varun Chakravarthy

Traded Out: Ankit Rajpoot (to RR), Ravichandran Ashwin (to DC)

Available Auction Purse: INR 42.70 crore

Available Slots: 9 (Indian 5, Overseas 4)

Auction Strategy

The Kings XI Punjab have now become synonymous with annual revamps. But this time, the playing squad has somewhat been spared and their overhaul has been restricted to the decision-making personnel at the helm.

Anil Kumble has replaced Mike Hesson as head coach while Ravichandran Ashwin, who has captained KXIP since 2018, has been traded out to DC.

Interestingly, they only have nine slots to fill and should look to make the most of their superior purse by targeting the hottest pick in each skill category. KXIP have a dearth of seamers - both Indian and overseas - and are expected to strongly pursue them.

Their batting lineup looks more or less sorted, apart from an overseas option to back up Chris Gayle and Nicholas Pooran. KXIP will also be in the market for a world-class all-rounder.

Potential Acquisitions: Chris Lynn, Pat Cummins, Chris Morris, Sheldon Cottrell, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Dale Steyn, Mohit Sharma, Jaydev Unadkat, Barinder Sran, Tushar Deshpande, James Neesham, Marcus Stoinis, Chris Jordan, Lendl Simmons

Kolkata Knight Riders

KKR have let go of some long-standing associations, both in terms of playing and coaching personnel

Retained: Dinesh Karthik, Andre Russell*, Sunil Narine*, Kuldeep Yadav, Shubman Gill, Lockie Ferguson*, Nitish Rana, Sandeep Warrier, Harry Gurney*, Kamlesh Nagarkoti, Shivam Mavi

Traded In: Siddhesh Lad (from MI)

Released: Robin Uthappa, Chris Lynn, Piyush Chawla, Joe Denly, Yarra Prithviraj, Nikhil Naik, KC Cariappa, Matthew Kelly, Anrich Nortje, Shrikant Mundhe, Carlos Brathwaite

Available Auction Purse: INR 35.65 crore

Available Slots: 11 (Indian 7, Overseas 4)

Auction Strategy

KKR made all the headlines when the list of players released by all franchises was revealed. Long-serving batsman Robin Uthappa, leg-spinner Piyush Chawla and swashbuckling batsman Chris Lynn have all been sent back into the auction pool.

There is, however, a fairly decent core in place in the retained players, with only two major roles in the starting XI that need addressing: a world-class overseas batsman and a gun overseas fast bowler.

They also need quality reserves for almost every skill-set, including a wicketkeeper, and some reliable backups for the injury-prone stars Andre Russell and Sunil Narine.

Potential Acquisitions: Chris Lynn, Aaron Finch, Eoin Morgan, Jason Roy, Glenn Maxwell, Pat Cummins, Chris Morris, James Pattinson, Sheldon Cottrell, James Neesham, KS Bharat, Fabian Allen, Chris Green, Sam Billings, Ravi Bishnoi, Piyush Chawla, R Sai Kishore, Jalaj Saxena, Shahrukh Khan, Anureet Singh, George Garton

Mumbai Indians

MI still have enough balance in their purse to upset others' plans

Retained: Rohit Sharma [c], Hardik Pandya, Kieron Pollard*, Quinton de Kock*, Mitchell McClenaghan*, Jasprit Bumrah, Lasith Malinga*, Krunal Pandya, Suryakumar Yadav, Anmolpreet Singh, Rahul Chahar, Ishan Kishan, Anukul Roy, Aditya Tare, Jayant Yadav.

Traded In: Trent Boult* (from DC), Sherfane Rutherford* (from DC), Dhawal Kulkarni (from RR)

Released: Yuvraj Singh, Evin Lewis, Adam Milne, Jason Behrendorff, Barinder Sran, Ben Cutting, Alzarri Joseph, Beuran Hendricks, Rasikh Salam, Pankaj Jaiswal

Traded Out: Mayank Markande (to DC), Siddhesh Lad (to KKR)

Available Auction Purse: INR 13.05 crore

Available Slots: 7 (Indian 5, Overseas 2)

Auction Strategy

Sit back and relax. On the back of a victorious 2019 campaign, their squad has only been boosted further by smart trades during the transfer window.

Given that they still possess a decent purse, MI could prove to be party spoilers for other franchises, and a team no one would want to get into a bidding war with.

Potential Acquisitions: Tom Banton, Sam Billings, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Mohit Sharma, Tushar Deshpande, Chris Jordan

Rajasthan Royals

The Royals need reinforcements to their Indian contingent

Retained: Steve Smith* [c], Sanju Samson, Jofra Archer*, Ben Stokes*, Jos Buttler*, Riyan Parag, Shashank Singh, Shreyas Gopal, Mahipal Lomror, Varun Aaron, Manan Vohra

Traded In: Mayank Markande (from DC), Rahul Tewatia (from DC), Ankit Rajpoot (from KXIP)

Released: Ashton Turner, Oshane Thomas, Shubham Ranjane, Prashant Chopra, Ish Sodhi, Aryaman Birla, Jaydev Unadkat, Rahul Tripathi, Stuart Binny, Liam Livingstone and Sudheshan Midhun

Traded Out: Ajinkya Rahane (to DC), Krishnappa Gowtham (to KXIP)

Available Auction Purse: INR 28.90 crore

Available Slots: 11 (Indian 7, Overseas 4)

Auction Strategy

The Rajasthan Royals possess an enviable mix of match-winners in their overseas stars. However, they need to enhance their Indian resources following the departure of Ajinkya Rahane, Jaydev Unadkat and Krishnappa Gowtham.

They would look for an experienced Indian batsman apart from a quality Indian seamer. RR also need some reliable backups for their overseas players, preferably in the value-for-money domain.

Potential Acquisitions: Lendl Simmons, Shimron Hetmyer, Tom Banton, Laurie Evans, James Neesham, Yusuf Pathan, Manoj Tiwary, Hanuma Vihari, Deepak Hooda, Chris Jordan, Sam Curran, Mohit Sharma, Lukman Meriwala, Virat Singh, Marcus Stoinis, Chris Morris

Royal Challengers Bangalore

RCB have retained only two overseas players

Retained: Virat Kohli [c], Moeen Ali*, Yuzvendra Chahal, AB de Villiers*, Parthiv Patel, Mohammed Siraj, Pawan Negi, Umesh Yadav, Gurkeerat Mann, Devdutt Padikkal, Shivam Dube, Washington Sundar, Navdeep Saini

Released: Marcus Stoinis, Shimron Hetymer, Akshdeep Nath, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Colin de Grandhomme, Prayas Barman, Tim Southee, Kulwant Khejroliya, Himmat Singh, Heinrich Klaasen, Milind Kumar, Dale Steyn

Available Auction Purse: INR 27.90 crore

Available Slots: 12 (Indian 6, Overseas 6)

Auction Strategy

Not for the first time, RCB endured a disappointing season on the back of lukewarm performances from their big-ticket players in 2019. The positive for them though is the swift development of the likes of Shivam Dube, Washington Sundar, Navdeep Saini and Devdutt Padikkal, because of which they have a strong Indian core at their disposal.

Having as many as six overseas spots vacant, their progress at the auction will be intriguing to follow. It remains to be seen whether they persist with their tradition of loading the squad with superstars, or if they opt for utility players and a better overall balance.

Potential Acquisitions: Chris Lynn, Tom Banton, Alex Carey, Pat Cummins, Sam Curran, Glenn Maxwell, Chris Morris, Sheldon Cottrell, Virat Singh, Shimron Hetmyer, David Miller, James Neesham, Mitchell Marsh, Alzarri Joseph, Pravin Dube, Lukman Meriwala, Chris Jordan, Jalaj Saxena, Robin Uthappa, George Garton

Sunrisers Hyderabad

SRH need to sort out their middle-order

Retained: Kane Williamson* [c], David Warner*, Manish Pandey, Vijay Shankar, Rashid Khan*, Mohammad Nabi*, Abhishek Sharma, Jonny Bairstow*, Wriddhiman Saha, Shreevats Goswami, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Khaleel Ahmed, Sandeep Sharma, Siddarth Kaul, Shahbaz Nadeem, Billy Stanlake*, Basil Thampi, T Natarajan

Released: Deepak Hooda, Martin Guptill, Ricky Bhui, Shakib Al Hasan, Yusuf Pathan

Available Auction Purse: INR 17 crore

Available Slots: 7 (Indian 5, Overseas 2)

Auction Strategy

The sun rises in style for the Orange Army through an intimidating top-3, but tends to set too soon owing to an underwhelming middle-order. At the upcoming auction SRH will hope to finally end this issue which has been plaguing them for several years now.

They have let go of Deepak Hooda and Yusuf Pathan, and it will be interesting to see who they pick as replacements given the dearth of quality alternatives in the market. Shakib Al Hasan's release was forced due to his ban, so they need will look for an overseas all-rounder as well.

SRH also need a backup overseas batsman, having parted ways with Martin Guptill.

Potential Acquisitions: Hanuma Vihari, Manoj Tiwary, Rahul Tripathi, Virat Singh, Shahrukh Khan, Jalaj Saxena, Stuart Binny, Fabian Allen, Piyush Chawla, Lendl Simmons, Sam Billings, Alex Carey, Ben Cutting