IPL 2014 Auctions: 5 best player deals which happened on Day 1

2. Kevin Pietersen (Delhi Daredevils)

Kevin Pietersen

He may be out of his national side, but there was never any doubt that there will be some fierce bidding for this player at the IPL auctions. The Daredevils have made some very wise buys, and Kevin is certainly their best. He returns to the side after his absence in 2013, an absence that hurt them real bad.

They were not interested in buying either Sehwag or Jayawardene, and have instead got a completely new pool of batsmen in Murali Vijay, JP Duminy and Dinesh Karthik this time. Pietersen is the best batsmen they have, and they haven’t gone out of their way to spend 9 Crore ($ 1500, 000) on him.

He will be the main attacker as far as their line-up is concerned. Apart from him, Mohammed Shami is another good buy, whereas spending such a hefty sum on Karthik can only be justified by their wicketkeeper needs. Pietersen has an experience of having played more than 100 T20 games (for IPL and England combined), and he averages close to 40 in this format, an excellent figure, not to forget the strike rate that touches 140. Delhi’s success in this IPL will depend heavily on him.

He will be in a mood to make full use of this opportunity, and he will be very hungry for runs to try and prove a point after what all happened recently. The bowlers will be wary of him from the onset, and opposition teams should better come up with a strategy to counter him, if they are to win against Delhi.

1. Albie Morkel (Royal Challengers Bangalore)

Albie Morkel

It was a move by Chennai that defied all logic when they did not retain Albie Morkel. The Royal Challengers, who were more than happy to take him, have a formidable line-up this time, and they are one of the top teams on paper before the tournament. They would have been so without this guy too, and so one can imagine what his addition will mean for the team.

The Vijay Mallya owned franchise has now got some really big names in Gayle, Yuvraj, Starc, Muralitharan, De Villiers, Kohli – in addition to this wonder of an all-rounder – it surely makes RCB one of the major teams to watch out for in this tournament.

Morkel, bought for 2.4 Crore ($ 400, 000) is one of the most experienced T20 players in the world today, with close to 300 game appearances, more than 3000 runs and close to 300 wickets to his name.

He was one of the reasons Chennai performed so well in the IPL over the years, and it will be great for RCB if he is able to find his place in an already star-studded line-up. It is sure, but, that he is bound to be given most number of games among the overseas players, along with De Villiers whose wicket-keeping services will be needed.

The other all-rounder in the side is Yuvraj. While he is known more for his batting, Albie will be involved in the pace bowling attack along with Mitchell Starc, Ravi Rampaul and Varun Aaron. His antics with the bat towards the end of the innings have come in handy in the past, and the same is bound to happen this time as well.

Both Morkels have changed sides this time. They have been dominant faces in the IPL, and it will be fascinating to see if they play for the same franchise in future someday. Maybe the Pathan brothers, too.