IPL Auction 2024: Players each IPL franchise will likely target, and why

Shardul Thakur could be a hot target for the Gujarat Titans in IPL Auction 2024, come December 19, 2023. (Photo via X)

Indian Premier League (IPL) franchises once again get an opportunity to rejig their team combinations before the start of a new season. The quest: to gather the ideal bunch that will take them to the Promised Land, the IPL 2024 trophy.

A total of 77 places, including 30 from overseas, are up for grabs at the IPL 2024 auction in Dubai on December 19. A few teams, like Mumbai Indians, Rajasthan Royals and Lucknow Super Giants, have less than Rs 20 crore at their disposal and therefore are unlikely to go big apart from for the odd player.

Gujarat Titans will face the Herculean task of replacing skipper Hardik Pandya, who has since been traded to Mumbai, but have the luxury of dipping into their vast purse of Rs 38.15 crore, the most for any franchise in this mini auction.

Teams will have specific players in mind to plug gaps but will also need to come up with a Plan B, just in case. Here's a look at the type of player each of the ten franchises might target on Tuesday:

CHENNAI SUPER KINGS: Ben Stokes’ unavailability won’t be as much of an issue – the England Test skipper had a limited role in the title run in IPL 2023 – as the retirement of Ambati Rayudu, the middle-order batsman who would occasionally double up as an opener. Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s side, which joined Mumbai Indians as five-time winners in 2023, have a quality middle order, but who will they go for as Rayudu’s replacement? The obvious choice would appear to be Shahrukh Khan, the uncapped right-hander with a penchant for big hitting. That Shahrukh is a local lad will add to the allure, though CSK haven’t been big on the sentimental front.

GUJARAT TITANS: How do you fill the giant shoes of Hardik Pandya? Three cricketers rolled in one, plus the captain who led the franchise to the title on debut in 2022 and to the final the following year? Shubman Gill has been named Gujarat’s skipper for the season to come, but there is still the matter of finding an all-rounder. Shardul Thakur, who has bounced around a fair bit, was released by Kolkata Knight Riders in the closed season and he could be a hot target, though Gujarat might also feel the need to bolster their overseas pace resources after letting go of Alzarri Joseph as well as Odean Smith.

LUCKNOW SUPER GIANTS: The KL Rahul-led side seems the most settled of the squads with only six spots, including two overseas, to be filled. They appear to have all bases already covered; if anything, they will target an Indian fast bowler after having traded Avesh Khan to Gujarat Titans. Among others, they can turn to the experienced duo of Umesh Yadav or Jaydev Unadkat. The latter has often attracted big bids but hasn’t quite lived up to his domestic form for Saurashtra, so that’s something that will weigh heavily on the minds of the management group.

MUMBAI INDIANS: Of the 11 players released by the five-time former champions at the end of IPL 2023, five are overseas pacemen, so it’s a no-brainer that that’s exactly what will be on their bucket list at the auction. The limited purse available (Rs 17.75 crore to fill eight berths) might not be a massive deterrent if they decide to target one of the Australian pace trio of World Cup-winning skipper Pat Cummins, swing exponent Mitchell Starc or the metronomic Josh Hazlewood, or Gerald Coetzee, the tearaway South African who was his country’s leading wicket-taker at the 50-over World Cup.

RAJASTHAN ROYALS: The champions of the inaugural edition don’t have a lot of money to play around with (Rs 14.50 crore) but having released Joe Root (who has since pulled out of the tournament) and Jason Holder, their immediate priority will be to procure the services of an all-rounder who can bowl seam-up too. Kyle Jamieson, the towering New Zealander who is no stranger to the IPL, could be on their wish list, as could Tom Curran, the England all-rounder, and Daryl Mitchell, the Kiwi who made centuries in both games against India at the World Cup.

ROYAL CHALLENGERS BANGALORE: One of the three from the original eight franchises not to win the IPL, RCB made sweeping changes after another abortive campaign. They let go of their head coach Sanjay Bangar, as well as a host of players including Josh Hazlewood, Michael Bracewell, Wanindu Hasaranga and Harshal Patel. The move from Mumbai Indians of Cameron Green is a welcome addition but they need more to shore up their reserves. One of their targets is likely to be Rachin Ravindra, the New Zealand all-rounder who made such a huge impact at the World Cup. Ravindra’s Bengaluru connection – his parents moved from India’s IT capital to New Zealand in 1997, two years before Rachin was born – could work to his advantage.

KOLKATA KNIGHT RIDERS: The two-time former champions parted ways with a dozen players at the end of the previous campaign in which they finished only seventh after losing skipper Shreyas Iyer even before the start of the competition. They have 12 positions to fill, among them four from abroad. With Rs 32.70 crore at their disposal, their eyes will be set firmly on Pat Cummins, the Australian who has played for them in the past. The return of Gautam Gambhir as mentor will mean a greater emphasis on stability, and who better than Australia’s World Cup and World Test Championship-winning captain to slot in as Iyer’s on-field guide and mentor?

PUNJAB KINGS: In a break from their revolving door policy, Punjab Kings let go of only seven players despite finishing eighth last season, though among them was Shahrukh Khan, for whom they must find a replacement in the form of a heavy Indian hitter down the order. They could turn to one of the uncapped duo of Vivrant Sharma or Sumit Kumar, who have both had no little success in domestic white-ball tournaments. They might also have an eye on an overseas fast-bowling all-rounder, in which case Sean Abbott is a decent option.

DELHI CAPITALS: Despite appearing to have a power-packed line-up, Delhi Capitals endured a miserable run in IPL 2023, just about avoiding the wooden spoon. Deprived of the ebullient presence of skipper Rishabh Pant, recuperating from a terrible road accident, Delhi failed to rise to the urgings of David Warner, who had steered Sunrisers Hyderabad to the title in 2016, winning just five of 14 matches. Retribution was swift as they axed 11 players; given how the Kotla surface behaves, they might plump for one of two New Zealand spinning all-rounders – left-hander Rachin Ravindra or Michael Bracewell, the powerful lower-order ball-basher who also bowls excellent off-spin.

SUNRISERS HYDERABAD: Hopelessly out of sorts with just four wins that consigned them to the foot of the table, the 2016 champions have resisted the temptation to make sweeping changes, though the decision to release centurion Harry Brook was a huge shock. They have a lot of money (Rs 34 crore) and not many slots to fill (six, three overseas), so expect them to be aggressive at the auction table. They will need a wrist-spinner after releasing Adil Rashid, as well as a replacement for Brook. Wanindu Hasaranga or Afghanistan youngster Qais Ahmed could be candidates for the former. As for a batsman, they won’t look beyond Travis Head, Australia’s World Cup hero who is certain to attract humongous interest come Tuesday.