IPL 2024
Indian T20 League 2022: 5 Indian players who can come as replacement signings
The Indian T20 League is ready to take over the nation by cricket fever from 26th March 2022. In February a mega auction was held in Bengaluru for the upcoming season. In the event, the 10 participating teams in the upcoming season spent about INR 5.52 billion to buy players for their squads.
A lot of factors were considered by the franchises to select the apt players for their squad. However, the fans were shocked when some experienced names of Indian cricket were not chosen by any of the teams. But given the length of the tournament and the bio bubble fatigue concerns some of these players might get a chance to play in the league.
Here are five Indian players who went unsold in the mega auction, but might be considered as replacements if some of the players decide to pull out midway through the tournament.
1.Suresh Raina
Suresh Raina at his prime was one of the best batsmen for the shortest format of the game. In the Indian T20 League, he has been more than important to the Chennai team. He has played in 205 Indian T20 League matches and has scored 5528 runs at a remarkable strike rate of 136.70. The fans were nothing short of shocked when Raina went unsold in the mega auction ahead of the upcoming season.
According to the latest reports, Raina will be a part of the Hindi commentary team in the upcoming season. But given the experience, he will bring and his knack for playing important knocks in crunch games, and he might be considered by the franchises if a member of their squad leaves midway through the tournament.
2.Ishant Sharma
Ishant Sharma has been an asset for Indian cricket in Tests in the last few years. But the tag of being a bowler of the longest format has somewhat affected his Indian T20 League career. Ishant had one of the best seasons in the league in 2019. He had a bowling average of 26.84 and picked up 13 wickets in the season.
But after that, he has not been given much chance to showcase himself in the tournament. This year Ishant was ignored by the franchises in the mega auction. But if a spot opens up for an Indian bowler, there can be no better candidate than him, with all his international experience.
3.Amit Mishra
Amit Mishra has picked up 166 wickets in his Indian T20 League career and is the third-highest wicket-taker in the history of the Indian T20 League. In the 2022 mega auction, none of the franchises picked up Amit Mishra in their squad. But if a team ever requires a replacement spinner, the Indian leg-spinner with an average of 23.9 would be ideal.
He has an affinity for picking up important wickets at crucial stages of a match. This with his experience in the tournament will be an asset to any team he becomes a part of.
4.Saurabh Tiwary
Saurabh Tiwary, at the beginning of his career, was often called ‘left-handed MS Dhoni’ due to their similarities in hairstyle and the Jharkhand connection. He was considered to be one of the next big names of Indian cricket. But Saurabh Tiwary failed to keep up his consistency and eventually got lost from the mainframe.
Last year he was roped in by Mumbai and did quite a decent job as a finisher for the team. He averaged 57.50 in the 14th season and played some important, dynamic knocks for his team. But this year he was unsold in the mega auction. So, if a team in the tournament is left in need of a batsman to steady their ship in the middle overs, Tiwary could be the candidate.
5.Pawan Negi
Pawan Negi has been seen playing for multiple franchises in the Indian T20 League over the years. Negi is a decent middle-overs bowler and a handy lower-order batsman.
As a bowler, Negi has picked up 34 Indian T20 League wickets with an economy rate of 7.86 and he could be a good option to stabilise the middle-order of any team with the bat.
