Top 5 trades in the IPL trade window

The IPL 2019 auction is going to take place at the Pink City Jaipur on 17th and 18th of December. Before the mega-auction, the teams got a chance to make some crucial changes in the squad through the trade window. In the trade window, teams are allowed to trade players or go for an all-money deal. Franchises this year have made good use of the first transfer window.

Five teams namely, Royal Challengers Bangalore, Mumbai Indians, Sunrisers Hyderabad, Delhi Daredevils, and Kings XI Punjab, traded players in this trade window. Players who were under utilised or did not perform as per expectations last season were exchanged with players who could fit in a particular team's scheme of things.

Even though the teams have put their best foot forward in getting in some new names in their squads to put up a strong challenge next season, only time will tell whether the trades that they have made are successful or not. Today we will look at the top 5 trades in the IPL trade window.

#5 Quinton de Kock - Mumbai Indians

Quinton de Kock wasn't at his best playing for RCB

Mumbai Indians sprung in a huge surprise by going for Quinton de Kock in the trade window. Mumbai Indians already have a well-settled opening pair in Evin Lewis and Ishan Kishan. And de Kock's performance playing for RCB in IPL 2018 was unconvincing. The opener's form for his national side has also been patchy.

However, there is no doubt about de Kock's talent and class. During his time with Delhi Daredevils, de Kock was the team's batting mainstay. Mumbai Indians' think-tank seems to have enough faith in de Kock's ability and they will hope that he gets his mojo back in Mumbai Indians colours.

#4 Abhishek Sharma - Sunrisers Hyderabad

Sharma during his debut match against RCB

Abhishek Sharma was a member of India's victorious U-19 team that won the under-19 World Cup last year. Sharma made some useful contribution, both with the bat as well as with the ball, in India's successful campaign in New Zealand.

Owing to which, he was bought by Delhi Daredevils at the auction for Rs 55 lakhs. After warming the bench for most of the season, the Punjab all-rounder finally made his debut against RCB. Sharma smashed 46 runs off just 19 balls against the likes of Tim Southee and Umesh Yadav. Even though his efforts went in vain as Daredevils lost the match, Sharma announced himself to the big stage in dazzling fashion. Also, he is a smart left-arm spinner and can be more than handy with the ball.

Sunrisers Hyderabad has shown a lot of faith in the youngster and it won't be a surprise if he becomes a regular feature in their playing XI.

#3 Marcus Stoinis - Royal Challengers Bangalore

Marcus Stoinis failed to deliver for KXIP in IPL 2018

Royal Challengers Bangalore had a star-studded line-up when they began IPL XI. Led by the charismatic Virat Kohli, RCB was among the favourites to win it's first ever IPL title. But the team flattened to deceive one more time. One of the areas of concern for RCB last year was the lack of fast-bowling all-rounders. They did try Corey Anderson for a brief period but he looked completely out of sorts.

In order to make amends, RCB has got Marcus Stoinis in the trade window. The Bengaluru based franchise traded Punjab batsman Mandeep Singh for Stoinis.

While Mandeep hasn't done much wrong to be left out of the squad, RCB is already a batting heavy unit and they are in need of options when it comes to all-rounders. Stoinis, who was retained by KXIP last year using the RTM card, had a forgettable IPL 2018 where he scored a total of 99 runs and took just 3 wickets in 7 matches. However, the Aussie has been in good form off late and performed exceedingly well in the ODI series against South Africa. He will be a valuable addition to RCB.

#2 Shahbaz Nadeem - Sunrisers Hyderabad

Nadeem appealing for a wicket

Shahbaz Nadeem is currently one of the most underrated cricketers in India. The left-arm spinner has proved his mettle again and again in domestic cricket across all formats. Nadeem has been with Delhi Daredevils since 2011 and has played 61 matches for the team. Even though he has been a consistent performer for the franchise, Nadeem had a poor IPL 2018.

The Jharkhand lad played 6 matches in IPL 2018 and took just 3 wickets. Moreover, Nadeem, who has the reputation of being an economical bowler, gave away runs at a poor economy of 10.73. He was thus traded by Delhi Daredevils in the trade window. However, Nadeem has been in brilliant form off late. After breaking the World record for best bowling figures in a List A game, the 29-year-old finally broke into India's T20 squad.

Sunrisers Hyderabad will be more than happy to get the services of Nadeem as he can be a perfect ally for Rashid Khan.

#1 Shikhar Dhawan - Delhi Daredevils

Dhawan will play for Daredevils after 11 years

IPL 2019 will mark the homecoming of Shikhar Dhawan to his home, Delhi. Dhawan, who played the inaugural season of the IPL for Delhi Daredevils in 2008, will be playing for the franchise after a gap of 11 years.

Dhawan has been part of the Sunrisers Hyderabad squad from 2013 and has been a prolific scorer for the side. However, the southpaw was reportedly unhappy with the amount he was paid by Sunrisers Hyderabad and was looking for another home.

On the other hand, even though Delhi Daredevils have young Indian talent in abundance in the likes of Rishabh Pant and Shreyas Iyer, they were suffering from a leadership crisis last season and thus they were looking for an experienced Indian in order to change their fortunes in IPL.

Dhawan is a proven match-winner in IPL and international cricket and will provide stability to the Daredevils' Top order. Now with Dhawan in the squad, it is highly likely that he will be given the added responsibility of the leading the side as well.