The Ultimate IPL 2024 Auction Preview

[00:00:00] Hello and welcome to this week's episode of the Edges and Sledge's Cricket Podcast.

[00:00:13] I'm your host Ashwin.

[00:00:14] We have a full house this week.

[00:00:15] DJ and Varun are both joining me.

[00:00:17] There are a few things to cover from the world of cricket.

[00:00:19] But what you're seeing here is today is going to be the ultimate IPL2024 auction preview.

[00:00:25] The day of recording this or if you're probably the polar opposite, the least interested in terms of the academic interest in the IPL auction. What is your take on it? Do you wish we didn't have it? Or are you secretly excited you just try to see him like you're not? I think I'm just going to follow you guys on it. I mean, I've been watching the drama unfold, right, with the captaincy changes, the trades, the just split. So, the series ended at 1-1 and then India came out swinging in the first ODI. So, do you want to quickly summarize for us? Yeah, I can summarize for you. Let me quickly bring up the scorecards because I don't remember the score of hand. But as you said, India won the game yesterday, the first ODI, actually took five...

[00:03:01] It was a bit of a weird game because it was a Sunday,

[00:03:03] so I woke up a little bit late, but at the time I woke up like South Africa was already bolded out.

[00:04:05] that squad. So it was a little bit weird not seeing him play the ODI games or the T20 games.

[00:04:12] But for me actually, and I mean, obviously this will be post the IPL option. For me, I'm looking forward to the test series, which will preview probably next week. I mean,

[00:04:16] depending on travel schedules and stuff. But I have found it, as you said, a little bit hard

[00:04:21] to watch cricket after that world cut, ODI World Cup that if I remember correctly, none of us ready for Test Team. I think it's only eight or nine days away at the time of recording. So I'm ready for it. Varun, let me ask you if you got a chance to follow or watch at all the women's game. It has been forever since the Indian Women's Test Team has played. Absolutely tremendous. I mean, aside from, I'll come to Deja to ask about the opposing captains comments at the end of the game about conditions particular context. I don't know. I mean, we seem to get the same story, whether it's the men's game or the women's game, right? I mean, it's hard for touring teams to play in India. Why would you expect anything different? And if the team batting first goes and scores 400 plus, and then they

[00:07:00] bad a second time and score 186 for six. And right, absolutely right. Couldn't agree more. Right, Varun, I know you're raring to go and ready to get into IPL mode. Last thing I need to talk about before we get into the IPL auction specifically is some of the pre-oxygen drama as it pertains to. So we've covered in pretty extensive detail, the Harthik Pandya trade to the Mumbai events.

[00:08:23] What has happened since we last got together,

[00:08:25] all three of us, is question is did Rohit know, did he buy into it? Is he part of it? Jaya Warden, I think the director for the Mumbai Indians, Drobel franchise came out and said, we built teams for the future.

[00:09:41] And this is very much that move.

[00:09:44] So many things, Rohit has not done well with the bat

[00:09:46] for Mumbai Indians in the last few seasons, go off about how good his tea 20 performance was at her band his own react performance. Yeah, so there have been reactions. I don't know, Bumbrop, Unformed Mumbai news. I don't know if that's true or not. I saw that. That sounds like fake news. Chial has changed his picture on Twitter to have Roy Charma and him. Like it's so weird thing, man, like Roy Charma, I'm glad to give him that three, four weeks because he needed

[00:11:03] that. I think he was in a shell. There's. I'm sure it has been. But the fact that it's come out and so many of these other events have happened just leads me personally to believe that there is an outside chance that somebody like Rojj Sharma may move. Now, I just want to break it up if I get both of your opinions.

[00:12:22] But I think somebody like Delhi, Hyderabad move came to make heart the captain because apparently it was a condition for him moving now.

[00:13:40] We all work in the corporate world, right?

[00:13:42] Like if you're moving laterally,

[00:13:44] that's not really a step up for you.

[00:13:45] If you're taking the same salary and it's a young man's game and Pardik is the future. So I can't see him moving but there's always a surprise or two in these IPLs. I'm with Varun the conspiracy theorist in me wants to believe that this new, I don't think there was a trading window starting December 20th. It's just reopened and the conspiracy

[00:15:00] theorist in me wants to believe that it was partly driven by the fact that you had these that dollar might talk to. That's a good shout. DJ, you have a point of view? Sir, I don't think it will be a batter. I don't think there's a... Travis does bowl as well. So I guess he's an all-rounder in a way, right? I remember, sorry, Pat Cummins. That was going to say Pat Cummins, because he's got the highest bid, I think $2.2 million a few years ago from KKR. It didn't go that well,

[00:16:20] and then he was born back by them,

[00:16:22] I think, for another million dollars or so.

[00:16:25] Okay, like, I think it's going to be Pat.

[00:16:27] He's had a fantastic year, Manish Pandey because he is also in the auction. I really want to. I'm going a little out of the field. I think we're going to see a really big bid this year for Vadindhuha Sarangvah. I think he brings a lot to the table leadership. Leg spin is just incredibly valued. And then he can bet. So I think he's going to get a nice big bid. Right.

[00:17:41] With this, let's jump right in. Varun, I'm going to start with you first.

[00:17:44] Let's start with the team we were just talking about So I think there is space for an overseas batsman like a head or somebody like a rutchef. I actually think they have space for me. So with 38 crores you think they'll go big for one of the really marquee names? Because their strategy has kind of been more lesser known names and find a way to make it work. But that all revolved around, are they?

[00:19:01] Yeah, exactly.

[00:19:02] And that's the catch from me.

[00:19:04] Right.

[00:19:05] Okay.

[00:19:06] So eight slots they have left to time, early promising careers, etc. So they do need to fill that Ambati hole, right? But I mean, those guys, they just look, they look okay. They were, they are the winners of the last year's title and I don't know what, is there

[00:20:20] anything else that they really need to do that look like a fairly settled side there?

[00:20:24] Who did they, I think he, go big for the all-rounders. But they already have tuxi-la. Maybe they have a strength in the shulang, correct? Even from a PR standpoint. Right, interesting. Very, very interesting. I thought DJ would come in saying they're going

[00:21:43] to come swinging for a Ben Stokes type replacement. I just think they have to go big for a couple of boulders. I think they may want to lean in with a bowling

[00:23:01] all-rounder in a bigger way or fast bowling been your problem. So something, I was put next when I saw it. If I think they were 38 crores with a lot of bowlers to fill, and then the whole camera and green nonsense happened and they lost another 15 from their butt, right? So very different to be saying 38 crores,

[00:24:22] a lot of bowling first to fill versus 23,

[00:24:24] and you have green, yes, but you need bowlers.

[00:24:26] I'm in full agreement.

[00:25:27] that is a fast bowler. So I think they need quicks and I think that you might actually see them go for some of the overseas quicks. So you never know if a Mitchell stock is somebody

[00:25:32] like that. Do you think that relying still on Bank of Asia here and under Russell to do

[00:25:36] eight quick or eight quick bowling overs? Because those are both not out and out quick

[00:25:40] ballers, right? Yeah, and Russell is a bit of the subscribe button. It always helps us expand our reach and continue growing. Guys, we're through four teams. DJ Varun mentioned this team earlier in the context potentially of Rohit Sharma, but without

[00:27:00] him, at least, let's talk about what the strategy for next tomorrow's auction is going to be

[00:27:04] for the Punjab Kings. I always hesitate because they've got to fill. So although they have a large purse, they can't really go after the big name players, I think.

[00:28:20] So because they've only got two.

[00:28:22] So maybe they'll pay a lot for those two and then Shimran Hetmayer, maybe about five. You have Rian Parag potentially to come in at four. And then from a bowling somebody, you have Ashwin Bolt, Chihal, and then maybe an Aves

[00:29:42] or a Presid.

[00:29:43] So they looked like a fairly balanced side, he's had a, is it good run internationally recently? And so there's some good, there's some big names like that that don't always get covered that I think Raj San's kind of style is they may go for some of those players to try to just shore up the batting order at the top.

[00:31:00] So, but overall, I mean, I think,

[00:31:03] and I think I forgot to even mention his name,

[00:31:06] but in addition to Chehil, just simply looking at maths, they're everable very big for a couple of players. Now, I think they've got that firepower at the start, whether it's Abdul Samad, Makram, Tupati, Maha Kagural, right? So they've got people in that top four. Then you've got a class in Anne Glen Phillips.

[00:32:20] So somewhere something is just not clicking for them.

[00:32:24] And I also don't think you can play all on the bowling and the order bowling all around. Now they've got Sundar, Jamsan, Buneeshar Kumar, Faruqi, Omran Malik. But there's just some X-Factor missing in my opinion. So I wouldn't be surprised again if a pack comes in the Mitchell Star. Kind of a name is picked up here because I do feel like

[00:33:42] somebody like Glenn Phillips is going to miss out and you could have a photo of the series my spreadsheet. Sorry, I was like, I brought it up in the essay section. So before I got corrected in the comments, let's talk about him in the context of Lucknow. What do you want to talk about him in the context of Lucknow? No, just talk to your Lucknow preview. I just realized I was jumping ahead when I was talking about him while seeing him. Yeah, again, they look like. Yeah. Three things for me. One is they got a particle in, right? Because particle wasn't doing well at R.R. in the position. So I think he's going to open. K.R.H.L. has said, I want to play in the middle order. So I think that's a mighty great move of him, so that he can play like that for India,

[00:36:21] knowing that there's a gap in the Indian team,

[00:36:22] and he can fill that.

[00:36:24] And then third, not from the main result, back to KKR.

[00:36:27] So three big changes. that hits the headlines as you think about the new look Mumbai Indians. If you can look at their top order, it goes Rohit Kishan, Suri Kumarya, the India ST 20 captain currently. They like Varma, bowling option as well, Haridik Pandya, Tim David and then you can maybe squeeze in a Neha Lvedera or then you start to go to a Romario Shepherd type of option at 6-7.

[00:37:42] I mean, it's just absolutely outstanding and I open the bowling he did for Gujarat in many instances. So they definitely have a lot of options. And then the only thing you think through with six of your top seven batting batters being Indian, you have more options to go after a lot more

[00:39:01] kind of overseas players.

[00:39:03] And so Kesha Maharaj has been a revelation

[00:39:06] in T20 cricket in the last few years. to just get him. So just to bag anything. Yeah, just to be honest. So just get used into this. Because I mean, while he's gaining fitness, I don't know if he's 100% fit. So they're gonna have Warner, they don't have Shaw who hasn't been looking great. They're gonna have Mitch Marsh and then potentially Bishop Park. And that is where the team ends, right from a bad perspective. So

[00:41:26] future because Warner is not going to play forever and so you're going to have to go for somebody. Right? So, somebody who can be part of your franchise for the next three to four years as a guaranteed

[00:41:31] experienced player in the 11. So, that is my view. I actually think that bowling looks pretty

[00:41:37] decent, right? Even if you play Nokia, CD, Khalil, Mukesh and Aksha, I think that Marsh is his time to shine. I think him and Warner should open the batting. Shaw and Punt should probably bat three and four. But that does, as Varun said, you need one kind of marky name. I won't say that they go for 18 crores from Darryl Mitchell, but they might go for like a Rachin or even a Cummins.

[00:43:04] But the common theme that you hear I mean, that is a, then you basically lock down your four overseas, you have a Nokia and a Stark, and you have a Mitchell and a Warner, that's it. And then everybody else has got to be a local player. It's okay as well. Yeah, I mean, I was gonna say the only other thing I think,

[00:44:20] I think you guys summarized it really well,

[00:44:21] is if early auction proceedings don't go their way,

[00:44:25] there's a world where they start to lean back and say,

[00:44:27] okay, remember we have Lungiur still comes in. But do you get one of them? I mean, I rage it till now. I was just like, you did cholakur cham. That was great. I can't think of a better route to wrap up this week's episode than talking about.

[00:45:43] I mean, I just, my mind is starting to walk around the idea that Rishab,