IPL Auction 2022: 5 European Players Who Can Cause A Bidding War

India are currently playing a white-ball series against West Indies. However, the focus will shift to the upcoming IPL 2022 Mega-Auction for a couple of days. The highly anticipated event is slated to take place on Saturday. From this year onwards, IPL will be a ten-team affair as two new teams have been added, namely Lucknow Super Giants and Gujarat Titans.

The 8 existing teams have already named their list of retained players, while the new teams have picked three players from the pre-auction draft. A lot of world-class players will make their presence felt in the mega-auctions. As per the list, a total of 590 players will be going under the hammer at the auctions. Of these, 370 are Indians, while 220 players are overseas.

A lot of English players are likely to fetch contracts at the IPL this year. As per a recent report, the England cricketers will be available for the entire period of IPL 2022. Thus, the franchise would look to add as many England players as possible. In this article, we take a look at 5 European players who can cause a bidding war at the IPL 2022 Mega Auction.

IPL Auction 2022: 5 European Players Who Can Cause A Bidding War

1. Jonny Bairstow

Jonny Bairstow hasn’t been retained by Sunrisers Hyderabad for the upcoming edition of the IPL. He too will be one of the players to watch out for at the auctions.

Bairstow was the one who stepped up to the task for Sunrisers Hyderabad in the first leg of the IPL 2021. While Warner failed to get going, Bairstow ensured he compensate for that. He played 7 matches in the first leg of the IPL 2021 for Sunrisers Hyderabad and scored 248 runs at an outstanding average and striker rate of 141.71 and 141.71.

Bairstow can give a rollicking start at the top of the order and can also bat in the middle-order as well. His power-hitting game should be enough for the franchises to bid heavily for him.

In his IPL career, he has played 28 matches and has managed to score 1038 runs at an average of 41.52 and a strike rate of 142.19. Bairstow has a fantastic record in IPL and one could expect him to cause a bidding war at the auctions.

2. Jason Roy

On Monday, Jason Roy played one of the best knocks in the history of T20 cricket. Turning up for Quetta Gladiators, he produced an outstanding knock of 116 runs in just 57 deliveries, a knock which was laced with 11 fours and 8 sixes. Perhaps, it came just at the right time as IPL auctions are just around the corner. Roy is one of the most destructive openers in the shortest format and chances are pretty high that he will cause a bidding war at the auctions.

So far in his IPL career, he hasn’t got a lot of opportunities to showcase his class. In the last season, he played 5 matches and scored 150 runs at an average of 30.00. It will be interesting to see which franchise manages to acquire his services at the auctions.

3. Liam Livingstone

Liam Livingstone rose to the limelight after dishing out impressive performances in the year 2021. He played outstanding knocks in the T20 franchise tournaments and also for England in international matches. Livingstone showed his all-round prowess in the ICC T20 World Cup 2021.

He picked 6 wickets with the ball at an outstanding economy of 5.73. With the bat, he scored 46 runs at a strike rate of close to 160. Livingstone can bat at any position in the batting order and is a destructive hitter of the ball. His multi-skill-sets would tempt the franchise to bid heavily for him at the auctions.

4. Paul Sterling

There is no denying that Paul Sterling is the best batsman in Ireland’s T20 side. He is, in fact, one of the best openers in world cricket at the moment. Sterling exhibits his destructive hitting in different franchise tournaments across the world. He has shown great form in the ongoing Pakistan Super League tournament.

In 5 matches, he has managed to score 187 runs at an average of 37.40 and a strike rate of close to 190. He will be a player to watch out for at the auctions.

5. Mark Wood

The franchises in the Indian Premier League have always been on the lookout for fast bowlers. India are known for producing batsmen but fast bowlers, who can bowl at over 140 clicks consistently, have always been a rarity. Thus, they look for more overseas options in that department. Mark Wood, thus, will be in high demand in the upcoming mega-auctions. So far in his IPL career, he has played only one match for CSK in the 2018 edition of the tournament.