IPL Auction 2022: “I’d have him in front of Ishan Kishan” - Brad Hogg names 4 players he wants Mumbai Indians to retain

Former Australian spinner Brad Hogg feels Mumbai Indians (MI) stand to lose a lot due to the IPL 2022 mega auction since they will be forced to release some of their big names.

MI have had the most settled squad in the IPL, which explains why they are the most successful franchise in the history of the T20 league. However, since teams have only been allowed to retain a maximum of four players, MI will have to let go of a number of their star performers.

Admitting that Mumbai will have the tough task of picking the four players they can retain, Hogg named Rohit Sharma, Suryakumar Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah and Trent Boult as his choices. Speaking on his YouTube channel, he elaborated:

“Mumbai Indians, they are going to lose some big players and they are going to be put on the back foot at the end of this auction. For me, you keep Rohit Sharma as your captain and Suryakumar Yadav - a batter who can play 360 degrees and turn the game on its head. I’d have him in front of Ishan Kishan and I’d keep Bumrah. For my overseas player, I’d keep Trent Boult. He picks up wickets in the powerplay, is improving in the death. I think that’s a huge investment.”

MI, who won back-to-back IPL titles in 2019 and 2020, failed to make the playoffs this year. They finished fifth in the points table with seven wins and as many losses.

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IPL Auction 2022: Brad Hogg backs KKR to retain Venkatesh Iyer

While MI and Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) both finished with 14 points in the IPL 2021 points table, Kolkata made the playoffs on the basis of having a superior run rate. They were struggling at the halfway stage, but turned around their fortunes in the UAE leg.

One of the heroes of KKR’s revival was Venkatesh Iyer, who stunned opponents with his bold stroke play. Backing Kolkata to retain Iyer, Hogg stated:

“Venkatesh Iyer has just come on stage and has really excelled in a short period of time. Do you make a huge investment in him going forward? I would. I will also keep (Shubman) Gill and (Varun) Chakravarthy. If I am looking at keeping overseas players, I’d like to keep both Andre Russell and Sunil Narine. I’ll keep Narine with the mystery spin and, hopefully, I can pick up Russell at the auction. He’s injury prone and not as reliable to start on the park as Narine.”

KKR’s stunning turnaround culminated in them reaching the final of IPL 2021, where they went down to CSK by 27 runs.