IPL Auction 2020: 3 players who can start a bidding war between CSK and KKR

The 13th edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) will kick start in the year 2020, and the franchises have started their preparations by announcing the list of released and retained players for the IPL Auction which is scheduled on December 19.

Chennai Super Kings led by MS Dhoni has won 3 titles in the IPL so far, while Kolkata Knight Riders has two trophies in their cabinet. CSK has performed consistently with experienced campaigners in their squad. On the other hand, KKR led by Dinesh Karthik has given opportunities to young talents who have shined on many occasions.

Both CSK and KKR share a rivalry against each other in the IPL, as they will be hoping for a successful campaign in 2020. With both teams looking to align consistent performers in their squad, let's take a look at three players who could start a bidding war between CSK and KKR.

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#3 Chris Morris

Chris Morris

Chris Morris has been an integral part of the teams he has represented in the IPL. Having played for CSK, RR, and DC in the past, this bowling all-rounder from South Africa can hit the ball out of the park in the lower order. He bowls medium pace in the opening and death overs, providing an immense contribution in all departments.

Chris Morris is familiar with the team dynamics of the Chennai Super Kings, having played under MS Dhoni before. He can be a perfect sixth bowler as the team lacks a death-overs specialist. Morris can get used as a floater in the batting, depending upon the given situation.

Morris' years of familiarity in the IPL can come into play as the Kolkata Knight Riders lack experience in the bowling department. As the team struggled a lot to find decent support to Andre Russell in the end overs, Morris could get used as a finisher for the side.

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With 517 runs and 69 wickets in his IPL career, Chris Morris is a perfect all-rounder who can perhaps start a bidding war between CSK and KKR.

#2 Pat Cummins

Pat Cummins

With 31 wickets in 16 ODIs and 48 wickets in 17 innings of Tests this year, Pat Cummins has been phenomenal for Australia in 2019. He has featured regularly in all formats for the Aussies, with him being perfectly able to bowl good-lengths and bouncers that make him a destructive bowler.

Pat Cummins can bowl well in the death overs as well as with the new ball. Chennai Super Kings lacked a bowler of such caliber last year, as Cummins could perfectly fit into the role. While Lungi Ngidi could return to the Chennai-based franchise, the addition of Cummins would help the team to clinch early wickets and reduce the opposition's score.

KKR splurged an enormous amount of ₹9.4 crores on Mitchell Starc last year, but he has mostly been an injury-prone. With Cummins having the experience of bowling well in Indian conditions, KKR could also buy a mentor for the younger bowlers like Prasidh Krishna and Kamlesh Nagarkoti in Pat Cummins.

The likes of Mitchell Starc and Sam Curran are expected to go expensive in this year's auction. A valuable addition of Pat Cummins for either CSK or KKR could help them build a decent bowling line-up for 2020.

#1 Chris Lynn

Chris Lynn

Chris Lynn's release by the KKR came in as a surprise for a lot of fans ahead of the 2020 IPL Auction. He has earned the reputation of a destructive opening batsman scoring 1,280 runs at a strike rate of 140.65 in the IPL.

Lynn is a lethal striker of the ball with precise timing, which makes him a valuable opener for any T20 franchise. Chennai Super Kings struggled with their frontline batsmen in 2019, as they would look to target Lynn in the auction. Pairing him with Shane Watson could help CSK avoid their opening woes, and score big in the powerplays.

Kolkata Knight Riders spent a hefty ₹9.6 crores on Chris Lynn last year, thus making him an expensive buy in the auction. KKR didn't retain Lynn based on his costly worth, but they won't be losing Lynn too early due to his recent performances in the shorter formats. KKR will try to retain Lynn at a lesser price or could use the RTM card yet again on the Australian batsman.

Considering how his recent T10 League ended, CSK and KKR could start a bidding war to gain the services of Chris Lynn in the auction.