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

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