IPL 2019: 3 teams that could be in contention for Mustafizur Rahman 

2) Kings XI Punjab

Kings XI Punjab

Though Punjab dominated the first half of 2018 IPL, their fortunes swung the other way during later stages of the eleventh edition. Openers, KL Rahul and Chris Gayle were the star performers with the bat for Ravichandran Ashwin's men last season- with Rahul amassing 659 runs while Gayle registered 368 runs. Others including Aaron Finch, David Miller and star Indian players failed miserably with the bat, which exposed the beleaguered Punjab middle order. In the bowling department, except Andrew Tye, Mujeeb Ur Rahman and Ankit Rajput every other bowler failed to make a mark.

Tye finished as the highest wicket-taker of 2018 IPL with 24 scalps in 14 matches and was awarded the Purple cap for his heroics with the ball, while Afghan teenager, Mujeeb took 14 wickets in 11 matches. Among the plethora of Indian bowlers, only Ankit Rajpoot performed well picking up 11 wickets in eight games. Other notable bowlers who failed to live up to the expectations (Mohit Sharma and Barinder Sran) have been released by the Mohali-based franchise ahead of the auctions.

Talented Aussie bowler, Ben Dwarshius who did not play even a game last season has also been released. Hence, Andrew Tye and Ankit Rajpoot are the only pacers present in the squad currently. This might prompt Punjab to go for a quality and proven pacer like Mustarfizur Rahman to strengthen their armour. With four overseas and eleven Indian players slots available, they need to recruit pacers who can complement well with Tye and Rajpoot. The Bangladeshi pacer might be an exact fit for the Kings XI if they could try and get his services.