IPL 2022 Auction, Day 1: Top 5 spinners who will make heads turn in IPL 2022

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It wouldn't be wrong to say that the Indian Premier League (IPL) auction is as exciting as the tournament itself. Since 2008, when the IPL made its debut, the auction has given the game of cricket some most exciting and interesting stories. From young and inexperienced players becoming millionaires to big names going unsold, the last 14 auctions have seen it all.

IPL Auction 2022 LIVE Updates from Bengaluru

Over the years, spinners have been instrumental to the success of various IPL teams. Spinners sometimes have a bigger role to play in the IPL than the pacers.The IPL 2022 mega auction is just around the corner and all the 10 franchises are gearing up to choose players from a group of 590 players (370 Indian, 220 overseas). As far as the tournament is concerned, it is likely to start in the fourth week of March.

Ahead of the auctions, Indiatv takes a look at the Top 5 Spinners who will make heads turn in IPL 2022.

1. Yuzvendra Chahal 

Age: 31

Base Price: Rs 2 crore
Teams: Mumbai Indians (2011-13), Royal Challengers Bangalore (2014-21)

Yuzvendra Chahal was released by RCB ahead of the IPL 2022 mega auction. He took the most wickets for the franchise till the time he was with them. Chahal is known to be one of the smartest and bravest leggy around. Last year, he played for RCB in two different phases where during the first leg, he was taken up for cleaners while in the second leg in Dubai, he came back much stronger to pick 18 wickets from the 15 matches that he played at an economy of 7.05. Now that he has been released, the other teams would look to bottle him up in the auction. RCB would also want to get their star spinner back in their red army. 

2. Ravichandran Ashwin

Age: 35
Base Price: Rs 2 crore
Teams: Chennai Super Kings (2008–2015), Rising Pune Supergiant (2016-17), Kings XI Punjab (2018-19), Delhi Capitals (2020-21)

The veteran off-spinner was released by Delhi Capitals ahead of the mega auction. There are reports that he might join his favourite side Chennai but nothing is fixed as yet. Many teams would chase him because of the experience that he has got and the variations that he applies as per the nature of the pitch. He had an ordinary season for DC last year where he could get only 7 wickets from 13 matches at an economic rate of 7.41. The spin master might also end up leading a particular franchise.

3. Adam Zampa 

Age: 29
Base Price: Rs 2 crore
Teams: Rising Pune Supergiant (2016-17), Royal Challengers Bangalore (2020)

The Australian leg-spinner has played IPL in the past for RCB. He also played for Rising Pune Supergiants when the franchise existed. Leggies have a high demand in shorter formats of the game, so in this year's auction, Zampa will be a key player to keep an eye on. He opted out of the last year's tournament and didn't play even a single game. In 2020 edition, he didn't get regular chances to play, so he could get only 2 wickets from 3 matches at an economic rate of 8.36. He is one of the reputed names amongst the overseas spinners who have enrolled themselves in the auction. 

4. Kuldeep Yadav

Age: 27
Base Price: Rs 1 crore
Teams: Mumbai Indians (2012), Kolkata Knight Riders (2014-21)

This year's IPL can be a defining season for Kuldeep Yadav for his cricketing career. He has been neglected for last two seasons, where he was allowed to play a total no. of 6 matches. He could grab just a single wicket in those matches. Kuldeep was recently recalled back into the Indian ODI team after the failure of Ashwin and Chahal in South Africa. He was at the peak of his bowling form between 2017-2019. There is a golden chance that he might do well in the upcoming auction with franchises looking for good Indian spinners.

5. Washington Sundar

Age: 22
Base Price: Rs 1.5 crore
Teams: Rising Pune Supergiant (2017), Royal Challengers Bangalore (2018-21)

In 2018 IPL auction, Washington Sundar was purchased by the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) for Rs. 3.2 Crore despite being just 19 at the time. Since then, he has grown from strength to strength as a cricketer and it won't' be a surprise if he earns a lot more at the upcoming auction. Sundar is a right-handed off-spinner who has the ability to bowl tight lines in the right areas and he just loves to open the bowling for his team. His team can bank upon him as a lower-order batting option also after he has proved his value with the willow. Last year, he could play only the first half of the tournament where he took 3 wickets from 6 matches at an economy of 7.37. In this year's auction, teams would hunt for this young and smart bowler. 

Apart from these top picks for the spin options in this year's IPL auction, there are some potential spinners also who can be picked as an alternatives by the franchises or maybe as the second choice bowler for their side on turning tracks.

- Mujeeb-Ur-Rahman
- Jayant Yadav
- Tabraiz Shamsi
- Krunal Pandya
- Wanindu Hasaranga
- Adil Rashid
- Rahul Chahar
- Shakib Al Hasan
- Mohammad Nabi
- Shahbaz Ahmed