6 Associate players franchises have chosen for IPL 2017 auction

Associate teams are being rewarded for their performances for their national side. They proved their caliber at the Desert T20 Challenge, and we have seen some stellar display by them in the World T20 as well. Some extraordinary batting, magnificent catches and power hitting- all making a favourable combination for a T20 League. IPL 2017 will see quite a few Associate players go under the hammer. Afghanistan will enter the auction with the maximum number of players among the Associate teams. Apart from that, there are one player from United Arab Emirates (UAE) is in the auction scheduled on 20th February. This will be the final year of IPL before the teams overhaul their squads for the next season to go under the hammer in a grand auction in 2018. So, this season is a good opportunity for the Associate players to make it big. 1. Mohammad Shahzad Mohammad Shahzad. (Photo Source: Facebook) The very popular Mohammad Shahzad is a natural starrer in the list and he will be the hottest pick among the five because he was in great form last month during the Desert T20 challenge. On 20th January, during Desert T20, Shahzad became the first cricket player in history to score 2 half centuries in two separate international matches on the same day (80 against Oman and 52* against Ireland). The added advantage is his work behind the stumps and the fact that he’s an opener who lofts the ball well. In 2016, he got the privilege of becoming the first Afghan to be named the ICC Associate & Affiliate Cricketer of the Year. Shahzad is currently ranked number 7 in the ICC T20 rankings. Does his perpetual attempt to pull something off like his idol MS Dhoni count as a benefit too? 2. Rashid Khan Rashid Khan of Afghanistan. (Photo by Gareth Copley/Getty Images,) The 18-year-old has already made it big by entering the ICC rankings for T20I bowlers and is ranked No. 5. It is currently the best by a bowler from an Associate nation. With 31 wickets in 21 matches, the leg-spinner will prove to be an asset, considering the boost they provide to a T20 side. He has an impressive economy rate of 6.14 in T20i, the fourth-best among bowlers with 30 wickets. Rashid caught eyeballs during ICC World T20 2016 by taking 11 wickets in 7 games. He continued to impress with his 9 wickets in the latest Desert T20. His leg-break and googly are often difficult to pick due to his slightly unusual action. He also bowls quicker, which usually suits the T20 format. Not many players who usually feature the IPL have faced him, so he brings some mystery with himself too. 3. Mohammad Nabi Afghan cricketer Mohammad Nabi celebrates the dismissal of Bangladesh cricketer Shakib Al Hasan. (Photo by -/AFP/Getty Images) He is one of Afghanistan’s most versatile and experienced batsmen of all times. His varying skills might attract many bidders. He has been their backbone on various instances and stands 4th in the list of ICC T20I all-rounders. He is handy with his off spin and can also assume the role of a handy hard hitter for the tail. His economy of 6.96 is commendable by T20 standards. In the recently concluded Desert T20, he sealed Man of the Match spot in the final against Ireland with figures of 4/10 in just 14 deliveries. He had done a pretty good job even on the opening night of the tournament against the same opposition with 2 wickets in his name and hitting a handy 26* off 17. He was also named the Man of the Tournament. It’s safe to say that he was a major contributor in Afghanistan’s first ever ten-wicket win in T20I. 4. Dawlat Zadran (© JEKESAI NJIKIZANA/AFP/Getty Images) The 28-year-old speedster is impressive and can bowl fast consistently in the top range 140–145 kmph. Dawlat Zadran’s 4/44 against UAE last month was the most recent show of his bowling prowess. He won a Man of the Match award for the same. Zadran has 39 wickets in 32 T20Is for Afghanistan at an average of 23.58. He was among the very few Afgani players to be ranked in top 10 of the ICC Rankings in January. He has been Afghanistan’s most consistent pace bowler in T20 cricket, with 62 wickets in 41 matches. Pace, wicket-taking ability, consistency- a package for a potential bowler. RCB, are you listening!? 5. Asghar Stanikzai Afghanistan cricketer Asghar Stanikzai. (Photo credit /AFP/Getty Images) Asghar Stanikzai is the current captain of the Afghanistan cricket team. Though his performance over the year hasn’t been extraordinary, he does qualify for being a hot pick in the auction. With 122 runs in the latest Desert T20 Challenge, Stanikzai showed that he can be a handy middle order batsman in the shorter format. The 29-year-old is remembered most for his innings against Bangladesh on March 2014, where he scored 90*. He initially anchored the innings and then blasted 6 fours and 3 sixes, one that went out of the ground. He also has a decent record in India during the World T20 where he went on to score 141 runs in the seven matches. That is going to be a bonus for the bidders who will hope that he can replicate that in the IPL 2017. 6. Chirag Suri Chirag Suri. (Photo by Getty Images) 21-year-old UAE batsman Chirag Suri has also been named in the list of players the franchises have shown interest in for the auction. He is the only player from an Associate team other than Afghanistan who has made it to the list. Suri doesn’t boost of amazing numbers but is a promising opening batsman. He played U19 cricket for UAE and one among his many mark worthy knocks was the half century against New Zealand in the U19 World Cup 2014. In his List A career the right-hander has played 3 matches a total of just 21 runs. Not a lot has been seen off Suri but certainly some talent scout of a team spotted something in him to bring him in the pool. He has a base price of 10 lakhs for the IPL 2017 auction.

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6 Associate players franchises have chosen for IPL 2017 auction

5. Asghar Stanikzai

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