IPL 2018: Four Players Who Can Replace Mitchell Johnson
Updated - 14 Mar 2018, 12:26 PM
An injury to Mitchell Johnson just a few days before he is to fly to India to participate in IPL is not a good sign.
He suffered a head injury during gym session and needed stitches to heel the wound.
There is no news on his availability for IPL as of now.
Should he be fit, Johnson will ply his trade for Kolkata Knight Riders, but if ruled out, the Dinesh Karthik led team will have to look for his replacements.
Let’s have a look at possible replacements of Mitchell Johnson –
Mitchell McClenaghan – The Kiwi pacer let go his national contract to play T20 leagues around the world, and he suffered the biggest surprise after going unsold in the IPL auction.
He found no buyers on the auction day, which took everyone by surprise.
Playing for Mumbai Indians, he did well in IPL 2017 and took 19 wickets in 14 matches.
In total, he has played 40 IPL games and has scalped 54 wickets.
He will be like to like a replacement for Johnson, who is also a left-arm pacer.
McClenaghan leads the race to replace Johnson if he is ruled out.
Varun Aaron – Once the future of Indian cricket, continues injuries marred Aaron’s presence in the international circuit and he couldn’t seal his spot in the Indian team.
In this years’ IPL auction, he went unsold as he fetched no buyers at his base price of Rs 20 Lakh.
He is currently at MRF pace academy, working with Glenn McGrath.
The bowler seems to be doing his homework, and a call-up to IPL can come anytime to replace the star player.
He has played for Royal Challengers Bangalore, Delhi Daredevils, Kolkata Knight Riders and Kings XI Punjab in the T20 league.
Rajat Bhatia – Probably the biggest player who didn’t get a buyer in the IPL auction was Rajat Bhatia.
The all-rounder is better known for keeping the flow of runs under check during middle overs and chipping in with a wicket or two.
He can also bat well and provides an advantage to any team he plays.
The Delhi all-rounder, who now plays for Rajasthan, will not just be on Mumbai Indians’ radar but every team will have its keen eye on the player, should they need his services during the tournament.
He has played for Delhi Daredevils, Rising Pune Supergiant, Kolkata Knight Riders and Rajasthan Royals.
Ishan Porel – The India U19 pacer, surprisingly, did not get any buyer in the IPL auction.
On the other hand, his two partners viz Kamlesh Nagarkoti and Shivam Mavi went for Rs 3.2 Crore and 3 Crore respectively.
Ishan does not have the pace that of Nagarkoti and Mavi but is more accurate than the two, as it seemed during the U19 World Cup.
It was his experience of playing Ranji Trophy that came handy, and he was the star of the bowl during the World Cup.
Porel will always be in contention to be roped in by any franchise.
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