IPL Auction 2019: 3 Players Chennai Super Kings could have targeted

The 2019 IPL Auction was an entertaining affair with several players going under the hammer. However, with only around 70 slots to fill, the franchises picked and chose the moments to dip their hands into the market.

The highest earners of the day were Jaydev Unadkat and Varun Chakravarthy with the pair fetching INR 8.4 crore each. While the former returned to Rajasthan Royals, the latter would play his debut campaign alongside the likes of R Ashwin and Chris Gayle at Kings XI Punjab.

As for the overseas players, Sam Curran and Colin Ingram were bought for INR 7.2 crore and INR 6.4 crore respectively.

While teams like the Delhi Capitals, Kings XI Punjab and Rajasthan Royals were quite proactive on the day, defending champions Chennai Super Kings had come into the auction with most of their bases covered.

The Chennai based outfit had only two slots to fill and got hold of Mohit Sharma and Ruturaj Gaikwad to complete their quota of players.

However, with the options on offer, one got the feeling that CSK could just have bought better by turning their attention elsewhere. Through this article, we would look at three players who escaped CSK’s clutches at the auction and why they could’ve been more suited than the ones they eventually gambled on.

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#3 Manoj Tiwary

Tiwary could have been a solid option in the middle

The batsman from Bengal surprisingly went unsold at the auction. Tiwary has had a decent run in the domestic circuit this season and thus, his failure to attract a bid left a few people scratching their heads.

The middle-order batsman represents a sound option in the middle phases of an innings. Capable of accelerating against the spinners, Tiwary would’ve also brought along with him a wealth of experience.

At present, Chennai do not boast of any top quality middle order backup batsman and hence, their inaction when Tiwary’s name came out of the hat could be a case of a chance gone begging.

Moreover, the lad from Bengal has played under MS Dhoni when the pair were part of the Rising Pune Supergiants. On many an occasion, the duo joined hands to ensure the Pune franchise punched above its weight and put up respectable totals.

In addition, Tiwary has improved a lot on his bowling and can be relied to get through an over or two if the premier bowlers are having an off-day. In the end, CSK opted for young blood in Gaikwad yet it could’ve continued its tradition of valuing experience and placing faith in Tiwary.

At this juncture, Tiwary is far from finished and always comes out to bat with something to prove to the world. CSK could’ve utilised the fire that exists in his belly to their advantage. However, with CSK deciding to not explore this option, a case could be made for an opportunity missed.

#2 Sarfaraz Khan

Sarfaraz burst onto the scene with some dazzling displays

The 21-year-old shot to prominence with his precocious displays as a teenager. However, a combination of injuries and poor form have led to him falling off the radar recently. After being the only uncapped player to be retained before the mega auction, Royal Challengers Bangalore let go of the batsmen this time around.

Sarfaraz has all the talent in the world to make it big as a batsman one day. Yet, somehow those aspects haven’t clicked into gear as often as he would’ve liked. The batsman who smashed the bowlers all around the park in just his inaugural IPL season seems a distant memory.

Sarfaraz set his base price at INR 20 lakh for the auction, expecting only a few suitors and that was what exactly transpired. After an opening bid, Kings XI Punjab stepped in and snapped up the player for INR 25 lakh.

With the batsman going for so cheap, one can wonder why CSK didn’t go for him. In the end, they decided to bring home Gaikwad, who incidentally is also a 21-year-old batsman. However, in Sarfaraz, they would’ve gotten a batsman with more IPL pedigree.

Moreover, Sarfaraz could’ve benefitted immensely under the tutelage of MS Dhoni. The former Indian skipper has re-ignited many a career in his time as captain and if he had been successful in working his magic on the former, CSK would’ve had a batting mainstay for years to come.

Yet, CSK eventually thought better of it and their fans would hope that they are not left to rue their decision once the IPL rolls in.

#1 Mohammed Shami

Shami has proven his worth in white ball cricket before

Mohammed Shami came up for auction at the very start with a few teams going all out to acquire his services. One of those teams was CSK and they decided to abandon their bidding once the price reached INR 4.8 crore.

However, minutes later, CSK shelled out INR 5 crore for Mohit Sharma, thus making the decision to withdraw their bid for Shami puzzling. At present, Shami is enjoying a renaissance having put his personal and injury problems behind him. Mohit, on the other hand, has been on a decline over the past couple of years.

Blessed with the ability to pick wickets at any stage of the game, the fast bowler would’ve added a new dimension to an already multi-faceted attack. Moreover, his ability to bowl at the death could’ve solved CSK’s death bowling woes.

Despite him not playing a lot of white-ball cricket, his previous exploits in the limited-overs format would’ve made him an asset to have. An Indian fast bowling trident of Deepak Chahar, Shardul Thakur and Shami is a luxury not many teams can boast of, yet, CSK let the pacer from Bengal slip through their fingers.

With CSK pulling the plug on any possible deal for Shami, they would hope that their choice of fast bowler doesn’t come to haunt them in the latter stages of the tournament.

But, one can’t help but wonder what could’ve been had Shami turned out for the Yellow Army.