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The 12th edition of the Indian Premier League is only a few months away and the franchises are extremely busy in their preparation for the new campaign.
Franchises were allowed to release or trade players during the transfer window and we have witnessed some excellent transfer business in the past few weeks. Shikhar Dhawan’s move to Delhi Daredevils highlighted the transfer window.
The 2019 IPL transfer window slams shut on Thursday and IPL franchises have submitted the final list of players they wanted to retain for the 12 edition of the tournament.
Chennai Super Kings retained the core of the title-winning squad and only released Mark Wood, along with two uncapped players. Other prominent players who are released from their respective squad includes Mustafizur Rahman, Mitchell Starc, Axar Patel, Yuvraj Singh, Pat Cummins, Jaydev Unadkat, and many more.
On that note, let’s take a look at One player each franchise should not have released or traded for the 2019 campaign.
#8 Delhi Daredevils: Shahbaz Nadeem (traded)
One of the underrated players in Indian cricket, Nadeem was phenomenal for Jharkhand in the recently concluded Vijay Hazare Trophy. With 24 wickets in just nine games, he finished as the top wicket-taker in the tournament.
He was also good for India B in the 2018 Deodhar Trophy. With an economy rate of just 7.36 in 61 IPL games, Nadeem was underutilized in the past few seasons.
#7 Kings XI Punjab: Aaron Finch
In a really surprising turn of events, Kings XI Punjab has released the current Australian skipper for IPL 2019. Finch is currently ranked No.2 in ICC T20I Players rankings and also the second highest run-getter in this format in 2018.
Though he struggled for Punjab in IPL 2018, he was phenomenal for Surrey in the Vitality T20 Blast 2018. In 13 T20I games for Australia in 2018, Finch has scored 469 runs at an average of 52.11 and a strike rate of 190.
#6 Rajasthan Royals: Heinrich Klaasen
Heinrich Klaasen came to prominence during India's 2017/18 tour of South Africa. He played well against the Indian spinners and was their standout performer in the limited-overs series.
Though he went unsold in the IPL 2018 auction, Royals signed him as a replacement for Steve Smith. He is a regular in the current South African limited-overs set up and Royals could have retained him for the 2019 season.
#5 Sunrisers Hyderabad: Shikhar Dhawan (traded)
One of the most prolific limited-overs batsman in world cricket at the moment, Dhawan has been in sublime form for India for the past few years. He has scored a truckload runs in international cricket and also in IPL.
In 143 IPL games, Dhawan has scored 4058 runs at an average of 33.26 and a strike rate of 124. He has been phenomenal for Sunrisers Hyderabad for quite some time and one of the standout performers in IPL.
#4 Kolkata Knight Riders: Mitchell Starc
Arguably the most destructive bowler in limited-overs cricket at the moment, Starc has been struggling with injuries for the most part of his career. Bought by Kolkata Knight Riders during the 2018 IPL auction for a whopping $1.8 million, the Australian seamer missed the entire 2018 season with a serious leg injury.
Starc made his comeback into the Australian squad for the recently concluded Test series against Pakistan and the ODI series against South Africa. In-form Starc is irreplaceable and KKR should have kept him for the 2019 campaign.
#3 Royal Challengers Bangalore: Mandeep Singh (traded)
One of the underrated players in the Indian domestic circuit, Mandeep Singh was underutilized by Royal Challengers Bangalore. With 252 runs at a strike rate of 135.48, he was their third highest run-getter in IPL 2018, only behind Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers.
However, they traded Mandeep for Marcus Stoinis with Kings XI Punjab for the 2019 Indian Premier League season.
#2 Mumbai Indians: Mustafizur Rahman
Mustafizur Rahman is one of the very few Bangladesh players to have featured in the Indian Premier League so far. He played a crucial role for Sunrsers Hyderabad in their 2016 title-winning campaign. Though he fell off the radar in 2017 because of injuries and poor form, he has done extremely well for Bangladesh in the past few months.
When fully fit and in-form, he is arguably one of the best medium pacers in world cricket right now. Mumbai should have given him one more season at least.
#1 Chennai Super Kings: Mark Wood
Though he hasn’t done enough to retain a place in the Chennai Super Kings’ squad, it is absolutely unfair for a player who has played just one game for Chennai Super Kings last season.
Also, with the 2019 IPL most likely to happen in South Africa, Mark Wood would have been a more than useful bowler for Dhoni in seaming conditions. His experience and skills would have helped the team a lot.
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