IPL 2020: 5 Players who might earn bids for the first time

The IPL auction is around the corner and the buzz is back. It was a little over a week ago that the teams announced their retained and released players. There were a few players who were traded between teams as well and some of them were big names too. The IPL auction is the road and the build-up to the cash-rich league which is played in the Indian summer.

It is less than a month away and there is a buzz around quite a few players. There are even players who might enter the auction for the first time as well. But there are also players who have not been picked ever before. After IPL 2019, a number of tournaments, including the T20 Blast, T10 League and CPL took place, and franchises can pick their players from there as well.

Here we look at five players who might earn their maiden IPL bids in the upcoming auction for the 2020 season:-

Tom Banton

At the moment, there is one Englishman whose name is on everybody’s mind, Tom Banton. The 21-year-old Somerset batsman has caught the attention of the world with his delightful stroke-play. He set the T20 Blast on fire earlier this year as he went on to amass 549 runs and was striking at 161.47.

Banton scored runs in all formats for Somerset in the English summer this year. There are quite a few shades of Kevin Pietersen in the way Banton bats. He recently made his international debut for England in the T20I series in New Zealand. Though he failed to convert his starts, Banton was impressive.

Thus, he will be one of the top picks in this upcoming IPL auction. A couple of franchises have already shown interest in one of England’s newest international players. Thus, in his first auction, Banton might hit it big and become the new sensation.

G Periyaswamy

There’s often been a lot of talk about Lasith Malinga and his awkward action. When Jasprit Bumrah came along, he became a talking point. But these two are bowlers who can master their skills at the death and give nothing away. Here is another bowler, who is similar- G Periyaswamy. The speedster has a weird action but can be very effective, especially at the death.

In fact, he is known to be the Indian version of Malinga because of his round-arm action and also, his ability to nail in the yorkers. Periyaswamy has played just eight T20 games and has picked up as many wickets. He averages 18 and strikes once every 14.5 deliveries.

He was brilliant in the Tamil Nadu Premier League this year. The speedster took 21 wickets in the tournament which included a magnificent spell of 5/15 in the final. Hence, Periyaswamy could be one of the local talents who is expected to be pretty attractive in the auction.

Shahrukh Khan

There is quite a bit of talk in and around Shahrukh Khan in the Tamil Nadu cricketing circles. The Chennai-born middle-order batsman has been making the right noises for the last couple of years. For the last two seasons, Khan has been one of the better batsmen in the TNPL.

Moreover, he has replicated that success for Tamil Nadu as well. He may have not got going in the current Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy so far, but he was in fine form in the Vijay Hazare Trophy. He donned the role of a finisher to perfection and he played a key role in Tamil Nadu’s journey to the final.

Khan hit 244 runs at an average of 48.00 and was striking at 125.77. Hence, the 24-year-old could play a finisher’s role in a team. It seems like he might get his first IPL bid this year.

Sheldon Cottrell

Sheldon Cottrell has become the premier fast bowler for West Indies in limited-overs cricket. West Indies may not have had a great year in white-ball cricket but Cottrell has been one of the big positives. He has emerged as the leader of the pack and has done really well.

In 2019, Cottrell is the leading wicket-taker for West Indies in both ODIs and T20Is. The left-arm fast bowler has picked up 26 wickets in the 50-over format while he has taken 11 wickets in the shortest format. He has troubled quite a few opposition batsmen as well.

Cottrell has never featured in the IPL before. Thus, with the form he is in, a maiden IPL bid may not be ruled out. He provides that left-arm angle and he is also good at the death.

Joe Root

In 2018, there was quite a bit of buzz around Joe Root. He had entered the IPL auction for the first time and openly admitted, he wanted to play more T20 cricket. However, it didn’t go according to plan for the England Test captain as he went unsold.

He was asked to skip the 2019 season due to the World Cup and Ashes that followed soon after. Thus, Root will most likely be back in the IPL auction this time again. And things maybe different this time around as well. England players are most likely to be available for the entire season with their home summer starting only in the first week of June.

Moreover, Root’s T20I record is not as bad either. He averages 35.72 and has a strike-rate of 126.30. Thus, he could be an anchor at No. 3 or even could open the batting if needed. Root could well attract some bids for the first time in the IPL.