IPL 2019: One overseas player from each franchise who might be underutilized

As we have seen for years, the Indian Premier League is all about finding the right combinations and to create an optimum team that can win most of the matches. It demands the right blend of Indian International, uncapped and overseas cricketers for which the franchises even sacrifice a hefty amount of money.

The squad building is arguably the most significant stage to attain the above and to fulfill that, the franchises might end up buying an excess of resources, due to which they might remain unutilized.

Quality players like Jason Roy, Colin Munro, Alex Hales, Carlos Brathwaite, Sam Billings, Heinrich Klaasen, Tom Curran, and many others spent a lot of time warming the bench last season.

Without much ado, here are some of the overseas players, who might remain underutilized in the upcoming edition of the Indian Premier League.

---

#8 Carlos Brathwaite - Kolkata Knight Riders

Carlos Brathwaite, who specializes in T20 cricket, is the current captain of the Windies' T20I side. The tall all-rounder is famous for his heroics in the WT20 final against England, where he slammed Ben Stokes for 4 consecutive sixes to help his team clinch their second WT20 title.

The Caribbean all-rounder was roped-in by Kolkata Knight Riders for a whopping INR 5 crores in this year's IPL auctions after battling against Kings XI Punjab.

With three spots for the overseas players automatically acquired by Sunil Narine, Chris Lynn, and Andre Russell, KKR will mostly look to support their inexperienced fast bowling attack by addition of a foreign bowler.

#7 Mitchell Santner - Chennai Super Kings

Santner is included in NZ squad for T20Is against India

The New Zealand all-rounder was grabbed by the current champions, Chennai Super Kings, at his base price of INR 50 lakhs in the previous auction. Mitchell Santner missed the IPL 2018 due to an injury and he was replaced by David Willey in the squad.

Santner is an economical left-arm spinner and a left-handed batsman capable of clearing the ropes at the back end of the innings. CSK is already flooded with spinners like Harbhajan Singh, Imran Tahir, Karn Sharma and all-rounders like Dwayne Bravo, Ravindra Jadeja, Shane Watson to provide them the required balance. Santner might find it hard to break into the XI.

#6 Oshane Thomas - Rajasthan Royals

Oshane is one of the future stars for WI

Oshane Thomas came into the limelight after some phenomenal performances in the 2018 CPL. He was also exceptional for the West Indies during the tour of India.

The 21-year-old is a solidly built fast bowler, who possesses great pace. Rajasthan Royals signed him for INR 1.1 crores but his involvement in the playing eleven will be limited. The overseas resources for RR contain big names like Jos Buttler, Ben Stokes, Jofra Archer, and Ish Sodhi, who are expected to play a key role.

#5 Heinrich Klaasen - Royal Challengers Bangalore

The South African wicket-keeper batsman gained the spotlight during India's tour to South Africa where Heinrich Klaasen outclassed the visitors' dominating leg spinning duo to take South Africa home in a stiff run chase and won the Man of the Match award.

The 27-year-old made it to the national side in absence of Quinton de Kock and made full use of the opportunity by converting his performance to an IPL contract. He joined Rajasthan Royals as a replacement of Steve Smith last season. But after not making enough impact, Klaasen was released by RR only to be grabbed by Royal Challengers Bangalore at the 2019 auction.

With overseas batsmen like AB de Villiers, Shimron Hetmyer, and Marcus Stoinis in the squad, Klaasen's chances will be limited.

#4 Adam Milne - Mumbai Indians

Milne played his last T20I in Nov last year

Adam Milne is considered the fastest Kiwi bowler since Shane Bond and has made his T20I debut at the age of 18.

The 26-year-old has been a part of IPL for the past three years but hasn't got many opportunities. The New Zealand fast bowler has managed to play only 5 games in the extravagant league so far.

After being released from the Royal Challengers Bangalore, he was roped in by Mumbai Indians but didn't get a single game in the entire 2018 season.

#3 Moises Henriques - Kings XI Punjab

Moises Henriques

One of the successful T20 cricketers, Henriques hasn't been at his best in recent times. Though he has found some form in the ongoing BBL, the Australian is not a player he once was.

The 32-year-old captains the Sydney Sixers team in the Big Bash League and has played 57 IPL matches. He piled up 969 runs including 5 fifties and has scalped 38 wickets in his journey.

The Australian all-rounder was picked by Kings XI Punjab for his all-round abilities. However, he is unlikely to play regularly this season. KXIP has the middle order firepower in the form of David Miller and Nicholas Pooran. Also, one cannot forget Chris Gayle.

#2 Colin Munro - Delhi Daredevils

Munro has played only 9 IPL games so far

Colin Munro, who became the first batsman to slam three T20I centuries, is also a handy medium pace bowler. He is a typical aggressive opening batsman who likes to dominate from the first ball.

He began his IPL journey in 2016, where he played in the middle-order for Kolkata Knight Riders. He was released by KKR and Delhi Capitals grabbed him. The return of Shikhar Dhawan and the rise of Prithvi Shaw might hinder his chances in IPL 2019.

#1 Martin Guptill - Sunrisers Hyderabad

Guptill has scored only one fifty in IPL so far

The biggest name to make it on the list is another Kiwi opener, Martin Guptill, who is ironically the leading run scorer in T20 international cricket. Having played 76 T20Is, he has surprisingly managed to play only 10 IPL matches.

The New Zealander has been a part of Mumbai Indians, Sunrisers Hyderabad, and Kings XI Punjab since joining the cash-rich league in 2016. The 32-year-old was bought by SRH in the 2019 IPL auction.

With the obvious overseas choices like David Warner, Kane Williamson, and Rashid Khan, the fight for the final overseas spot comes down to Shakib Al Hasan, Billy Stanlake, Jonny Bairstow, Nabi, and Guptill. Shakib Al Hasan seems the candidate because of his all-round abilities.