IPL 2018: 5 players who can replace Mitchell Santner in the CSK squad

The New Zealand all-rounder, Mitchell Santner, will go under the knife soon, which is going to rule him out of cricketing action for nine months. Due to this, he will not be able to take part in the upcoming Indian Premier League for the Chennai Super Kings.

CSK had bought the 26-year old at his base price of Rs 50 Lakh and he was expected to play a key role for the men in yellow on low and slow Indian pitches.

Santner has been in terrific form off late in international cricket and the CSK fans were really excited to have him for IPL 2018 having seen his performances in the recent ODI series against England. However, unfortunately, it wasn’t to be as the left-arm spinner has decided to have a surgery to sort the issue that he’s been having with his knee. Apart from missing the IPL, he will miss the test matches against England too, which is a big blow for the Blackcaps.

The CSK management will be deliberating the names to sign as a replacement for Santner and they have plenty of options to choose from, as a lot of talented T20 players went unsold during the auction. Here are the 5 names we look at who can be an ideal replacement for Santner in the CSK squad:

#1 David Willey

Willey has been very successful in England's domestic circuit

David Willey has been very successful playing for his county Yorkshire in the domestic T20 competition in England known as the Natwest T20 Blast. He is a left-hander who is capable of opening the batting and he goes hard in the power play overs. Being the big unit that he is, he has got the big shots in his armoury and he can be an impact player at the top of the order.

Batting is, however, not Willey’s only forte. He offers plenty with the ball as well. He possesses the capability of swinging the new white nut and can provide crucial breakthroughs to the captain up front. Also, he can come back and bowl slower deliveries with control in the latter part of the innings.

He is a fine package from the T20 cricket point of view and may prove to be a useful signing for CSK if they go for him.

#2 David Wiese

David Wiese has had a good time in the IPL in the past

David Wiese was listed in the auction at a base price of Rs 50 Lakh and surprisingly, nobody showed any interest in him. He was a decent performer for the Royal Challengers Bangalore in IPL 2015 and 2016 and was expected to attract the bids from a few franchises this year, however, it didn’t happen and the veteran all-rounder couldn’t find a buyer.

Wiese is again a batting all-rounder who is a lusty hitter of the cricket ball down the order. He has got plenty of experience of playing T20 cricket around the world and is a finisher who can be banked upon at the crunch stage of the innings.

As far as his bowling is concerned, he is not a new ball bowler and ideally, a captain won’t like to use him in the power play. However, he has got variations and can be a good choice to be used in the middle overs especially if the pitch is abrasive and the ball sticks to the surface a little bit. He is surely worth being shortlisted by CSK.

#3 Andile Phehlukwayo

Phehlukwayo is an emerging young talent from South Africa

Andile Phehlukwayo has been one of the emerging players of South Africa and has been a regular figure in the Proteas line-up in white ball cricket. It was not too long back that he had shown his power game with the bat in the fourth ODI against India at the Wanderers on the 'Pink Day'

Phehlukwayo is a hit-the-deck bowler who uses his shoulders to bang the ball into the pitch and extract some sort of carry. He doesn’t have a lot of pace, but gets the ball to rise awkwardly at times due to his height. He also bowls cutters every now and again.

Talking about his batting, he is quite a powerful bloke and while he does have some limitations against spin, especially if the pitch assists turn, he has got a fair range against the fast bowlers and is not a bad prospect for the no. 7/8 slot.

#4 Thisara Perera

Thisara Perera is a match winner with the bat

Thisara Perera has been around for a long time, but he still hasn’t achieved the consistency a player is supposed to achieve with experience. However, there is no denying that he brings enormous value to a T20 side with his skills. If he fires, he is one of those players who can win games on his own.

As he is a subcontinent player, his hitting abilities against spin are a tad better in comparison to the other all-rounders. He can come down the track and can go down the ground, which is the advisable way to play spinners on slow surfaces. He can handle himself against pace too and when on song, there are very few bowlers in the world who can stop him.

Bowling wise, Perera can go for runs at times, but in the past few months, he has done a fair enough job in the death for Sri Lanka. He has a slightly round-armish sort of full delivery, which he has got good control over and that’s one of his go-to deliveries to keep the batsmen at bay.

#5 James Faulkner

James Faulkner is still a handy all-rounder in T20s

James Faulkner, once upon a time, was an IPL star, but his game in the last few years has gone down drastically. He has lost that sting he once used to have in his bowling. He got predictable in the previous IPL with his variations and the batsmen lined him up, waiting for that back-of-the-hand slower ball that he dished out 90% of the time.

Faulkner, however, is still a decent T20 player considering the fact that he can bat in the middle order as well. Unlike the other all-rounders, he has got different gears in his batting and while he can deposit the ball into the stands, he can manipulate the strike too if the situation of the game demands so.

CSK can think about his name, more as a batting all-rounder rather than a bowling all-rounder, as his bowling does not seem good enough at the moment.