IPL 2019: 4 top-ranked T20I stars in ICC ranking who could miss the tournament

With the upcoming IPL 2019 auction occurring at Jaipur on December 18, the franchises must be shortlisting the players whom they are going to target this time. The ICC Cricket World Cup, which is happening in a fortnight after the IPL finals, could be thwarting the preparation of the franchises.

The teams and their owners are not clear on players availability till now. The players from countries like Australia and England will not be available during the final third of the tournament as they need to be in the World Cup preparation camps from May 1st week. This will result in major names from Australia and England missing out the tournament this time.

As far as the batting department is concerned, the IPL 2019 will most likely miss six of the world's best 10 T20 batsmen in the world. Similarly, five of the top 10 T20I bowlers will most likely not play a part in this tournament. Also, eight of the 10 world's best T20I all-rounders may miss the grand event.

This slideshow covers the top four players who may not play any part in the upcoming Indian Premier League 2019.

#1 Aaron Finch - Australia

Aaron Finch is currently the No.3 T20I batsman in the ICC rankings. He is right behind Babar and Munro with 806 points.

The Australian opener was released by Kings XI Punjab surprising everyone during the transfer window. His participation in the ICC ODI World Cup would have played a huge part in Kings XI not retaining him. Also, Finch may miss the initial weeks of the IPL tournament as the Australian team is scheduled to play Pakistan in an ODI series in late March.

It is most likely that Finch may go unsold in the upcoming auction as he will be available only during the middle phase of the tournament.

#2 Adil Rashid - England

Adil Rashid should consider himself unlucky if he misses finding a team in the upcoming IPL auction

Adil Rashid is the premier spin-bowler in the current England T20 and ODI side. He has played nine T20 games this year and gotten 12 wickets at an average of 20.50 and a strike-rate of 18.00. His ODI statistics is as impressive as the T20 one.

Rashid is currently the No.4 ICC T20 bowler with 676 points. It was a surprise decision by IPL clubs not to bid for Rashid last season considering the success he garnered in T20 cricket in the past two years.

Rashid expressed his interest to play in the IPL by saying " The IPL is something I would like to play in one day, but that's something for the future".

Rashid may not find a bidder this time too as he will not be available for the full tournament because of his World Cup commitments.

#3 Glenn Maxwell - Australia

Maxwell is the currently the number one T20I all-rounder in the world

Maxwell, the Big Show of Australian Cricket Team, has not lived up to his potential in the IPL tournaments so far. The Australian all-rounder didn't justify his price tag of Rs. 9 crores last season. He scored just 169 runs from his 12 games last season for Kings XI Punjab and he was rightly released by the franchise.

However, Maxwell has been an asset to the Australian T20 side for the past two years. His ability to score runs at a phenomenal strike-rate has been a boon to the struggling Australian team. He is currently the No.1 ICC T20 all-rounder with 362 points. He is also in top five batsman ranking too. Recently, he played a big part in Australia levelling their home T20 series against India with his all-round display.

He may not find a suitor this team as his struggle in Indian conditions has been perennial. He endured contrasting fortunes with the IPL and T20Is so far in his T20 career.

#4 JP Duminy - South Africa

JP Duminy, so far, failed to reproduce his international success in IPL

Mumbai Indians bought JP Duminy for his base price (one crore INR) last season. However, Duminy struggled in Indian conditions like most South African batsmen as he scored just 36 runs from his six games. He has been released by Mumbai Indians in the transfer window.

However, Duminy is having a good 2018 with the Proteas side. He is currently the 4th best T20I all-rounder in the world with 216 points. He is averaging 52.67 runs per match in T20Is this year.

Duminy, like Maxwell, did not replicate his international success in IPL. He is playing in IPL since 2009. He has played 69 games and scored just 1397 runs at a dismal average of 22.90. However, the South African all-rounder never looked convincing from his eight IPL seasons.

Duminy has none, but himself, to blame if he doesn't get a contract for the upcoming IPL season.