IPL Auction 2023: SRH and MI - The auction game

SRH had a poor season last time [Source: IPLT20.COM]

The IPL mini-auction is just around the corner. 10 team will try and use all the permutations and combinations to make their perfect side.

So, in this piece, we will analyse two popular teams in the IPL - Mumbai Indians (MI) and Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) and the possible players they can target with the purse remaining.

Sunrisers Hyderabad

After an underwhelming performance in the 15th edition of the Indian Premier League, Sunrisers Hyderabad parted ways with their Captain Kane Williamson. They have also released overseas players like Nicholas Pooran, Romario Shepherd and some Indian talents in Jagadeesha Suchith, Priyam Garg and Shreyas Gopal ahead of the mini-auction. 

Overall, they have released a total of 12 players from their squad, making them the franchise with the highest purse going into the upcoming auction.

Current SRH Squad

Glenn Phillips, Abhishek Sharma, Marco Jansen, Abdul Samad, Aiden Markram, Rahul Tripathi, Washington Sundar, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, T Natarajan, Umran Malik, Fazalhaq Farooqi, Kartik Tyagi.

Auction Mathematics for SRH

Purse remaining: 42.25

Total slots to fill:13

Overseas:4

Indian:9

Players to Target

Captaincy:

First of all, SRH need a captain. Ben Stokes has to be their first choice as their skipper, considering their huge purse. He could bat in the top order and bowl all those four overs in batting powerplay and middle overs. Although, they might get quite a competition from Punjab Kings, who also have a massive purse of 32.2 crores.

Opener:

Moving Forward, they would also need an opener to pair with Abhishek Sharma. SRH might go for Manish Pandey again as they did in the last auction, but if not Manish, Mayank Agarwal could be on their radar.

Wicketkeepers:

In the mega auction, Hyderabad released Nicholas Pooran, who was bought for a whopping price of 10.5 crores. However, they might try to buy him back at a lower price, as he provides a two-dimensional play. On top of that, he can bat as a floater according to the team's composition.

Among Indian keeper-batters, SRH might target Narayan Jagadeesan, who has had a brilliant run in domestics this year.

Wrist Spinners:

Hyderabad would need wrist spinners, and they might go for Adam Zampa as an overseas spinner. He has been excellent for Australia for the past few years. And among Indian players, they might go for Murugan Ashwin as he has experience playing for them.

The Sunrisers have so many voids to fill, and with the purse they have, they could do pretty well in the mini-auction and end up as one of the best-looking sides.

Mumbai Indians

After a forgettable season where Mumbai Indians finished last on the points table, they could win four games out of 14 in the 2022 season. And, in the aftermath, they released 13 players from their squad before the mini-auction. 

Current MI Squad

Rohit Sharma (C), Tim David, Ramandeep Singh, Tilak Varma, Suryakumar Yadav, Ishan Kishan, Jofra Archer, Jasprit Bumrah, Hrithik Shokeen, Jason Behrendorff, Akash Madhwal, Tristan Stubbs, Dewald Brevis, Arjun Tendulkar, Arshad Khan, Kumar Kartikeya.

Auction Mathematics for MI

Purse remaining: 20.55 Cr

Total slots to fill: 9

Overseas:3, Indian: 6

Players to Target

Spinners:

MI could target overseas options like Adil Rashid, Tabraiz Shamsi and Adam Zampa. As for Indian options, there are not so many options available in the auction pool that can deliver what you expect them to. They could go for Shreyas Gopal; who was a part of them in previous seasons.

Overseas fast bowling allrounder:

Sam Curran. It has to be Sam Curran but looking at the purse of Hyderabad and Punjab; it would be difficult for MI to get him. If not him, they can also go for Jason Holder or Romario Shepherd, as they went for both in last year's auction but could not get any of them.

Fast bowling backups:

There's no doubt that replacement is born as yet for Jasprit Bumrah, but if asked for, then only Shivam Mavi or Ankit Rajpoot look at likely replacements - in the given scenario. As an overseas fast-bowling backup, they might go for Duan Jansen, who is part of the MI franchise in SA20.

Mumbai need to do so many things right in this mini-auction. But, with their pretty decent budget, Rohit Sharma and the management can make a combination of big names plus young talents to their squad in every sense.

Also Read: What should be the Auction game for Rajasthan Royals ahead of IPL 2023?