"I am not looking towards Shreyas Iyer or Chahal" - Aakash Chopra picks 3 players the Lucknow franchise should acquire ahead of the IPL 2022 Auction

Aakash Chopra has named the players the Lucknow franchise should pick in the draft ahead of the IPL 2022 auction.

All eight existing IPL franchises have already exercised their right to retain players ahead of the upcoming auction. The two new franchises - based out of Lucknow and Ahmedabad - can now pick three players apiece in a draft before the remaining players go into the auction.

In a video shared on his YouTube channel, Aakash Chopra named KL Rahul, Rashid Khan, and either Ishan Kishan or Hardik Pandya as the three players the Lucknow franchise should go for. He said:

"I am saying the three players you should pick are KL Rahul - who you can pick as your captaincy candidate, Rashid Khan as your second pick and if you can get one out of Ishan Kishan or Hardik Pandya, that will be your third pick. I am not looking towards Shreyas Iyer or Chahal."

While casting his vote for Pandya ahead of Ishan, the former India cricketer also gave reasons for not opting to go with Shreyas Iyer and Yuzvendra Chahal. Aakash Chopra explained:

"I am not looking towards Chahal because I am looking towards Rashid. And if you have Rahul, then you don't need Iyer. So my dream wishlist will be KL Rahul as captain and a keeper, get Rashid Khan - phenomenal player and after that, Ishan Kishan or Hardik Pandya - Hardik Pandya might be a better choice but I will be absolutely ready to take Ishan Kishan."

Shreyas Iyer opted not to stay with the Delhi Capitals when the franchise decided to stick with Rishabh Pant as their skipper. The Mumbaikar might not want to be picked by the Lucknow franchise as well if KL Rahul is the designated captain there.

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"Lucknow is making all the right moves" - Aakash Chopra on Gautam Gambhir and Andy Flower joining the franchise

Aakash Chopra highlighted that Andy Flower is a renowned coach

Aakash Chopra also lauded the Lucknow franchise for picking Andy Flower and Gautam Gambhir as head coach and mentor respectively. He said the following about the former England coach:

"Lucknow is making all the right moves. Andy Flower is a proven customer if you see his coaching history. He was instrumental in the DNA change of English cricket. He was a central figure along with Andrew Strauss."

The former KKR player added that Gautam Gambhir's vast experience of T20 cricket will hold the Lucknow franchise in good stead. Aakash Chopra elaborated:

"Gautam Gambhir understands the game, he understands the pulse of T20 extremely well and also the IPL. In my opinion, he will have a huge say while picking the team - which Indian player to be picked, who to be picked in which slot and who to make the captain. For that, Gautam could be a fantastic pick."

Gambhir led the Kolkata Knight Riders to IPL trophy wins in 2012 and 2014. He could play a significant role in formulating strategies for the Sanjiv Goenka-owned franchise.