5 new players added to list of players ahead of IPL auction

In a last-minute addition to the list of players going under the hammer today, the IPL has added five more players to the group, probably at the behest of franchises. England skipper Eoin Morgan, South African Rassie Van der Dussen, Riley Meredith from Australia, and Mayank Dagar and Pranav Gupta are the five players added to the list.

England skipper Eoin Morgan had initially made himself unavailable for the tournament along vice-captain Joe Root, with all their focus turned towards the World Cup right around the corner. However, in a last minute change of minds, Morgan has thrown his hat into the race too.

It will be interesting to see whether he finds any suitors, particularly because of his unavailability for the full length of the tournament. Having played for KKR, KXIP and SRH already, Morgan failed to have an impact in the IPL. The England skipper will be available from a base price of 2 crores, which incidentally is the highest base price one can set.

South African Rassie Van der Dussen has seen his stocks rise tremendously over the past year. Having been a domestic heavy-weight for a long time in South Africa, Rassie finally found his calling in the Global T20 Canada this year. A part of the CPL for a few years too, Rassie knows the scene around franchise cricket. It was in the inaugural Mzansi Super League that he truly made heads turn.

Ending up as the leading run scorer, Rassie comes across as an ideal middle-order bat for most teams. It was surprising to see him missing from the pruned list in the first place itself. Having a cool head on his shoulders, expect Rassie to be in the thick of many team's short-lists. Rassie has set his base price at a modest 50 lakhs.

The other three players are relatively unknown commodities. Uncapped Australian pace bowler Riley Meredith is capable of clocking speeds over 140 kmph regularly. Riley has represented Hobart Hurricanes in the BBL. The fact that he has been added to the list on such short notice would imply that some franchise would have been interested in him. So while not many know of him, expect him to get picked.

Pranav Gupta and Mayank Dagar are the two Indians who have been added. Their base price is 20 Lakhs.

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