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The Indian Premier League (IPL) is back, and this time it will be bigger than ever. With two new teams coming in and over 1200 players in the fray, this is going to be one of the most exciting auctions ever. With over 300 overseas players up for the auction, most of them are going to be in high demand.
In its 14-year history, there have been multiple international players who have set the IPL stage on fire. That started with Brendon McCullum's unbeaten 158 on the competition's inaugural night in 2008. There will be a few experienced foreign players in this year's auction too.
With the 2022 auction approaching, here's a look at the five foreign players with the most runs in the competition who will go under the hammer:
#5 Quinton de Kock (two-time IPL winner) - 2256 runs
Quinton de Kock started his IPL campaign with the Sunrisers Hyderabad in the 2013 season.
After a few lacklustre seasons, his first breakthrough campaign came in 2016 when he amassed 445 runs for the Delhi Daredevils at an average of 37. However, his best years in the IPL have come with the most successful team in IPL history - the Mumbai Indians - who traded him from RCB in 2019.
Since then he has scored over 1300 runs for the MI Paltan in three seasons, winning two IPL trophies along the way as well. A left-handed wicketkeeper batter at the top the order is a rare commodity. So De Kock is likely to go for big bucks when his name gets called out in the 2022 auction.
#4 Shaun Marsh - 2477 runs
Die-hard IPL fans will remember Shaun Marsh who took the first season of IPL by storm.
A relatively unknown commodity back then, Marsh ended up being the highest run-scorer in a league full of star-studded players. The left-hander amassed 616 runs at a staggering average of 68, despite missing out the first four games.
He has played all his IPL games with the Kings XI Punjab. Although he has rarely been able to meet those lofty standards in subsequent seasons, he has still played some crucial innings for the Punjab franchise over the years.
At 38, he is not the player he once was, but his recent BBL form suggests he still has some cricket left in him. So it would not be a surprise to see him getting picked up by one of the ten franchises at the auction.
#3 Steve Smith - 2485 runs
Part of the much raved-about fab 4 of cricket, Steve Smith has been one of the best batters in world cricket in the last decade.
His record of 2485 runs in 103 IPL games at an average of 34, with a strike rate of 128, isn't bad by any stretch of imagination. However, with Smith, expectations have always been sky high, so one gets the feeling there might be much more to come from him.
His best season in the IPL came in 2017, where he led the Rising SuperSuper Giants to the final, aggregating 472 runs at an average of 39 along the way. Let go by the Delhi Daredevils ahead of this year's auction, Smith also brings with him proven leadership credentials. So it would not be a surprise to see him go for big bucks at the auction.
#2 Faf Du Plessis (three-time IPL winner) - 2935 runs
One of the unsung heroes of South African and franchise cricket, Faf du Plessis has been a pillar of consistency for Chennai Super Kings in the IPL in the last few years.
His IPL record is stellar: 2935 runs in 100 matches at an average of 35 and a strike rate of 131. He was instrumental for CSK in their title-winning 2021 campaign, scoring 633 runs at the top of the order at a superb strike rate of 138.
While many pundits thought Du Plessis would be retained by CSK, they eventually went with Moeen Ali as their overseas pick. That meant Du Plessis was let into the auction pool. Considering his impressive record in the competition, it would not be a surprise to see a bidding war for the South African's services.
#1 David Warner (2016 IPL winner) - 5449 runs
David Warner has been an absolute legend in the IPL in terms of the sheer number of runs he has scored and the consistency he has shown in the last few years.
His IPL record is exemplary: 5449 runs at an average of 41 and a strike rate 140. He also has 54 fifty+ scores in 150 games, which is roughly a fifty+ score every third match. Warner famously led Sunrisers Hyderabad to their first IPL title in 2016 amassing 848 runs in that edition.
His association with the Hyderabad franchise might have ended on a bit of a sour note. However, after his exploits in the 2021 T20 World Cup, where he ended up as the player of the tournament, Warner is going to be one of the hot picks in the 2022 IPL auction.
