IPL Auction 2020: 3 players who could be the most expensive overseas signing this year

Foreign players always fetch big money in the IPL player auction every year and this year's edition isn’t likely to be an exception in that regard, even though it’s not a mega auction. Plenty of overseas swashbucklers are listed to go under the hammer and there is every chance that the franchises break the bank for them, come 19th December.

New kids on the block have always attracted IPL franchises, with some of the young foreign players going at huge prices even without having too much international experience in their kitty. The franchises will also be extremely interested in the reputed international stars and proven match-winners up for grabs in the auction.

Also see – Ranji points table

Here are the three players who could be the most expensive overseas signing in the IPL 2020 auction:

#3 Chris Lynn

Chris Lynn

Kolkata Knight Riders are the only IPL franchise Chris Lynn has been a part of. The franchise had released him ahead of the IPL 2018 mega auction but bought him back at a hefty price of 9.6 crores.

Lynn, however, couldn’t meet the expectations of the KKR management last season, which has now led to his release from the franchise again.

He was in devastating form in the Abu Dhabi T10 league played recently as he averaged 53.00 and batted at a strike rate of 236.30 in the tournament. He was equally effective against both spin and pace and he hit a total of 31 sixes in the eight games he played.

KKR might not go for Lynn again, but there is no doubt that the other franchises will be highly interested in the services of the Aussie right-hander. His recent exploits in the T10 league might just make him the highest-earning foreign recruit this year.

#2 Shimron Hetmyer

Hetmyer scored a century in the first ODI against India

Shimron Hetmyer was the talk of the town ahead of the last IPL auction and, unsurprisingly, managed to invite bids from various franchises, eventually to be signed by RCB at a price of 4.2 crores.

Hetmyer didn’t get as many playing opportunities in the team as he would have liked to. After failing in the first four games, he had to warm the bench for a long period of time before he returned for RCB’s last game of the season to score a match-winning 75 against the Sunrisers Hyderabad.

That knock of 75, even though it came in a winning cause, was not enough for his employers to retain him as they decided to get rid of the young southpaw.

Hetmyer is back in the auction pool this year and considering his recent international numbers, which include a world-class hundred against India at Chennai, the 22-year old Caribbean will be a hot pick again.

#1 Tom Banton

Tom Banton

Tom Banton has only played three T20Is for England but is already quite a famous name among the international cricketing fraternity. He caught the eyes of the fans and the pundits with his batting in the Natwest T20 blast earlier this year where he scored 549 runs in 13 games playing for Somerset at an average of 42.23 and a strike rate of 161.47.

Banton is rated so highly by some former cricketers that he is already being compared to England legend Kevin Pietersen.

His tendency to get on top of the ball most of the time allows him to control his horizontal bat shots. He has got a range of shots in his arsenal and can explore all areas of the ground, which is why it is tough to contain him when he is on a roll.

The 21-year old showed his batting prowess in the Abu Dhabi T10 league as well where he scored 162 runs in 5 games averaging 40.50 and striking the ball at a rate of 200 runs per 100 balls.