The focus will be on swords in West Indies and Australia, but some of the lesser-known youngsters may pull out with big deals at the IPL Player Auction in Kolkata on Thursday, as franchises are expected to limit their spending.
The thirteenth edition of the lucrative franchise league will have additional significance because 2020 is the year of the T20 World Cup.
With 14 years and 350 days, Noor Ahmed from Afghanistan has become the youngest name in the auction group. The left-arm chinaman, with a base price of Rs 30 lakh, can join players such as Rashid Khan and Mohammed Nabi to play in the prominent Super League.
Noor has been impressive in the recently-launched U19 series against India, where he picked up nine wickets.
Among the young Indians, the first player in Mumbai, Yashasvi Jaiswal and Priyam Garg, who lead the U-19 World Cup team in India, will be watched with the spinning of Tamil Nadu, the left arm Tamil Nadu, R Sai Kishore pacemaker from Bengal, Ishan Porel. All have a base price of Rs 20 lakh.
For the stars, Shimron Hetmyer, the 22-year-old West Indies hitter who was launched by Royal Challengers Bangalore before the auction, already presented himself with a century from 85 balls in the first ODI vs India in Chennai.
The Guyanese southpaw, who has a base price of Rs. 50 lakh, scored the most in the previous T20I series: 120 in three games with a hit rate of 151.89.
After buying him at a whopping price of Rs. 4.2 crore last year, Royal Challengers Bangalore allowed batsmen to attack in 2019 IPL.
But with three cards available for the right to match, RCB can still exercise the option to keep the player in the model.
However, with a larger portfolio, other franchises will target Hetmyer at the first-time auction in Kolkata.
Kesrick Williams, from the West Indies, is also expected to set a medium rhythm, which had upset the captain of India Virat Kohli as he is in the T20 International series, offering an intense offer at a base price of Rs 50 lakh.
The limited money in a portfolio of most franchises may mean that the bid will not be particularly aggressive for those with a higher base rate.
The auction includes five Australians: Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood, Chris Lynn, Mitchell Marsh and Glenn Maxwell. The five, along with South Africa's Del Steyn and Sri Lanka Angelo Matthews, are in the top group of Rs. 2 crores.
Australian cricket players participating in the World Cup chose not to participate in the 2019 auction, but this time they registered their names keeping in mind the T20 World Cup at home in October.
While Mitchell Starc has chosen not to participate this year, it is very likely that Maxwell, Cummins, Hazlewood and Lyn would be considered top players.
After hopping two years in a row, Cummins can be a good deal. He had an impressive season for 2017 with 15 wickets at a strike rate of 18.46.
However, it remains to be seen how Del Steen and Angelo Matthews will do at a high base price of Rs 2 crore.
Steyn was not sold at the previous IPL auction, but Royal Cha Challengers Bangalore agreed to replace Nathan Coulter-Nile. This was not good, as he had an injury that excluded him from the World Cup.
Upon entering the auction, RCB off-loaded Hetmyer, Marcus Stoinis, and Colin de Grandhomme along with nine other players. They are probably the busiest among the teams to fill 10-12 spaces.
With the likes of Tim Southee, Pat Cummins and Josh Hazelwood at stake, it will be interesting to see how they'll do it with Rs. 27.90 crore in their portfolio.
Among the Indians, Robin Uthappa, former Kolkata Knight Riders vice-captain, who was released by his winning team at IPL, maintained his base price at Rs. 1.5 crores.
Currently leading Kerala state on the national circuit, Uthappa has recorded 139 runs in six T20 national championships for Mushtaq Ali Trophy, and it remains to be seen whether the 34-year-old has found any takers.
KKR also released Piyush Chawla, and he is among the four bowlers who collected 150 wickets in IPL. The leg-spinner fixture, in addition to the Yusuf Pathan, bears a price tag of Rs 1 crore.
Indian test specialist Cheteshwar Pujara and Hanuma Vihari, at a base price of Rs 50 lakh, also enter the tender area. Pujara was not sold last year, while Vihari was released by Delhi Capitals.
As for the teams, Kings XI Punjab, who is aiming for an elusive title, has the most money to brag about, Rs. 42.70 crore, and is expected to make an extensive offer.
With its rocky top arrangement, KXIP looks very dependent on Mohammed Shami as a quick bowling option. They can search for a spinner to fill the void left by Captain R Ashwin's exit.
Funds with franchises:
CSK: Rs 14.60 crore, Delhi Capitals: Rs 27.85 crore, KXIP: Rs 42.70 crore, KKR: Rs 35.65 crore, MI: Rs 13.05 crore, RR: Rs 28.90 crore, RCB: Rs 27.90 crore, SRH: Rs 17 crore.
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