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The biggest domestic T20 league is just a few months away. The auction for the 2019 IPL was concluded recently and the squads of all the eight teams have almost been finalized.
Varun Chakravarthy and Jaydev Unadkat were sold to Kings XI Punjab and Rajasthan Royals, respectively. These two were the biggest buys at the auction and pocketed ₹ 8.40 crores each. Sam Curran and Colin Ingram are two other players who will be taking home plenty as they were bagged by KXIP and Delhi Capitals for ₹ 7.20 crores and ₹ 6.40 crores, respectively.
Axar Patel, Carlos Brathwaite, Shivam Dube, and Mohit Sharma were the other big earners -- and will be receiving ₹ 5 crores each for their services.
On the wicketkeeping front, many of the teams decided to retain their primary wicketkeepers while there were also some who decided to purchase them.
Prabhsimran Singh was the highest earning wicketkeeper and was sold to Kings XI Punjab at the auctions for a whopping ₹ 4.80 crore. Nicholas Pooran came next and he was also bought by the Punjab-based franchise for ₹ 4.20 crores at the auction.
In this article, we aim to analyze the wicketkeepers of all the eight IPL teams and rank them accordingly.
#8 Delhi Capitals
Rishabh Pant and Ankush Bains are the two wicketkeepers in the Delhi Capitals squad. 21-year-old Pant will be the preferred first choice for the Delhi-based franchise. The Uttarakhand-born player is currently one of the best left-handed talents in the country.
In the 38 matches he has played in the IPL thus far, Pant has scored 1248 runs at an average of 35.66 and a phenomenal strike rate of 162.71.
Even though his batting form is not the best currently, he is fantastic behind the stumps. Pant recently made the record for taking the most number of catches (11) by an Indian wicketkeeper in a Test match (Adelaide Test against Australia).
His batting scores were 36 and 30 in the Perth Test while they were 25 and 28 in the Adelaide Test. The young wicketkeeper-batsman will be hoping to up the ante in the upcoming international matches and convert his starts into big knocks.
23-year-old Ankush Bains has a decent first class record and will be Delhi's back up option.
#7 Royal Challengers Bangalore
Heinrich Klaasen and Parthiv Patel are the two wicketkeepers in the Royal Challengers Bangalore squad.
Parthiv Patel has tons of experience of playing in the IPL. The 33-year-old last played a match for India A when they went up against New Zealand A. He scored 94 and also took a catch in that match. The quintessential backup of the Indian national team will look to make a mark in the upcoming season of IPL.
Heinrich Klaasen is another good option for RCB. The 27-year-old has played six T20s for South Africa and has scored 144 runs overall at a good strike rate of 169.41.
The Pretoria-born player is also very calm and composed in pressure situations. Playing for the Titans in the four-day franchise Series, Klaasen scored 63 and 40 in the 1st and 2nd innings, respectively, and also took two catches in the recent match against Knights.
#6 Kings XI Punjab
Kings XI Punjab splurged a total of ₹ 9 crores in procuring Nicholas Pooran and Prabhsimran Singh at the auction. Lokesh Rahul is their retained wicketkeeper. 26-year-old Lokesh Rahul has a fantastic IPL career. In the 53 matches, the Karnataka-born player has played, he has scored a total of 1384 runs at an average of 38.44 and strike rate of 139.38.
Rahul's form has been topsy-turvy in the recent past. The Punjab-based franchise will hope he can find his form quickly as he played a pivotal role in the team last time around. Rahul was also the third highest scorer overall (highest for Punjab) as he made 659 runs in the 14 matches Punjab played last season. Besides this, Rahul also set the record for making the quickest half-century last IPL when he scored 50 off 14 balls against Delhi.
23-year-old Nicholas Pooran is also a very exciting prospect. The Windies player has given some terrific performances in the Caribbean Premier League and will look to shine in the IPL as well.
Prabhsimran Singh is a new kid on the block who idolizes Virender Sehwag. The 18-year-old has got a terrific chance to play in the IPL and he will look to showcase his dashing batting whenever given the opportunity.
#5 Sunrisers Hyderabad
Jonny Bairstow, Wriddhiman Saha, and Shreevats Goswami are the three wicketkeeper-batsman options that will be available to the Sunrisers Hyderabad in the 2019 IPL.
The 29-year-old Englishman, Bairstow, was roped in by the franchise for ₹ 2.2 crores. The right-handed batsman has plenty of experience playing for the national team across all the three formats. He also hit a fine century against Sri Lanka in a Test match in November. The Bradford-born player will look to make his experience count for the Hyderabad-based franchise.
Wriddhiman Saha has bags of experience of playing in the IPL. In the 115 matches he has played in India's domestic T20 extravaganza, Saha has scored 1679 runs with the average 24.33 and a strike-rate 129.85.
After a disappointing campaign in the previous edition, the experienced wicketkeeper will be rearing to bounce back in the coming edition. Shreevats Goswami will be the last option for Sunrisers behind the stumps as the 29-year-old is in poor form.
#4 Mumbai Indians
Ishan Kishan and Aditya Tare were the two wicketkeepers which were retained by the Mumbai-based franchise for the coming season of IPL.
Meanwhile, 26-year-old Quinton de Kock was traded with Royal Challengers Bangalore and is another valuable addition. The South African player has plenty of experience playing in the IPL and also enjoys a decent record in India's domestic T20 league -- scoring 927 runs in 34 matches at an average of 28.09. The young player had a decent outing with Blitz in the Mzansi Super League wherein he managed to hit two fifties and a century in eight matches.
Ishan Kishan led India to the finals of the 2016 Under-19 World Cup. The 20-year-old has consistently improved through the years, both as batsman and wicketkeeper. Currently playing in the Ranji Trophy for Jharkhand, the youngster hit three fifties in his last four innings and also contributed behind the stumps by picking up eight catches in the two matches (against Services and Uttar Pradesh).
31-year-old Aditya, who plays for Mumbai in Ranji Trophy, has had a few half centuries and even a century in the previous six first-class matches. However, his form has been far from consistent and there are also many low scores the experienced wicketkeeper will not be too proud of. Aditya must up the ante and bring out the best in him if he wants to become a feasible back-up option for Mumbai Indians.
#3 Kolkata Knight Riders
Dinesh Karthik and Robin Uthappa, both of whom were retained by KKR, are the main wicketkeepers in the squad. Dinesh had a fantastic IPL last time around and led the team to the playoffs. He was the highest scoring batsman for KKR as he amassed 498 runs in 16 matches with the average 49.80 and strike rate of 147.77.
DK will be looking to put up a strong show this time around as well. The 33-year-old has played 168 IPL matches and will bring his experience to the fore. He is also the wicketkeeper to effect the most dismissals in IPL history and has taken 94 catches and made 30 stumpings.
Robin Uthappa played a few good knocks for the Kolkata-based franchise in the last season but was still far from his best. The Karnataka-born player scored 351 runs in 16 matches and will be looking to improve upon these numbers significantly in the coming season.
Nikhil Naik will be the backup wicketkeeper in the team.
#2 Rajasthan Royals
Prashant Chopra, Sanju Samson, and Jos Buttler are the three wicketkeeping options available for the Rajasthan Royals.
Hailing from Trivandrum, Sanju is one of the emerging wicketkeepers in the country. The 24-year-old was extremely effective with the bat last season as he scored 441 runs in 15 matches at an average of 31.50 and strike rate of 137.81.
Jos Buttler is also an important cog in the Rajasthan Royals Machine. The English stroke-maker had a delightful season last time around as he scored 548 runs in 13 matches with an outstanding average of 54.80 and strike rate of 155.24.
In fact, Buttler was the highest run-getter for the Rajasthan Royals in IPL 2018. Both Sanju and Buttler will be of paramount importance for the team this time around as well so the Royals fans should keep a keen eye for them.
Prashant Chopra, who is enjoying a decent form in first-class cricket for Himachal Pradesh, is an able back up option in the team.
#1 Chennai Super Kings
MS Dhoni was brilliant for CSK, both with the bat and behind the stumps, in the previous edition of the IPL. The veteran captain scored 455 runs with an average of 75.83 and an excellent strike rate of 150.66. Mahi was the third highest run-getter for the team behind Ambati Rayudu and Shane Watson.
Captain cool led the Chennai-based franchise to their third title and will be looking to ensure his team continues winning. N Jagadeesan, the youngster from Tamil Nadu, will act as the backup option for CSK.
Sam Billings had a forgettable IPL last season. The Englishman is not in the best of form currently as well and will need to really brush up his batting soon if he wants to make it to the final playing XI this time around.
Ambati Rayudu had an excellent IPL last time around and cumulated 602 runs with an average of 43.00 and strike rate of 149.75. The 33-year-old was CSK's highest run-getter last time around can also act as the wicketkeeper in case needed.
