5 Players Kolkata Knight Riders Should Look To Buy In IPL 2022 Auction

The mega auction for the upcoming season of the Indian Premier League (IPL) is scheduled to be held on February 12 and 13 in Bengaluru. In a bid to get the strongest composition possible, the existing eight teams are set to battle it out with the two new franchises -- Lucknow Super Giants and Gujarat Lions. Ahead of the mega auction, the two-time champions Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) have retained four players. West Indies all-rounder Andre Russell and Sunil Narine have been retained, along with Varun Chakravarthy and Venkatesh Iyer. They will enter the mega auction with a purse of Rs 48 crore.

List of players retained by the Kolkata Knight Riders

Andre Russell   (Rs 12 crore)
Varun Chakravarthy  (Rs 8 crore)
Venkatesh Iyer  (Rs 8 crore)
Sunil Narine  (Rs 6 crore)

Here are five players we think Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) should go for in the IPL 2022 mega auction:

1. David Warner (Rs 5 crore max)

Apart from being a daunting figure at the top of the order, David Warner also has the leadership qualities to succeed at KKR. He guided SunRisers Hyderabad to the IPL title in 2016, and it's fair to say that he could be the right man to lead KKR after both Eoin Morgan and Dinesh Karthik were released by the franchise.

2. Shreyas Iyer (Rs 7 crore max)

Apart from Warner, Shreyas Iyer is another player who is being monitored by almost every team ahead of the auction. Apart from his exploits with the bat, Shreyas can also be a great leader, having led the Delhi Capitals to the final in 2020.

3. Lockie Ferguson (Rs 5 crore max)

Lockie Ferguson did not feature for KKR much in the last two seasons of the IPL, largely because of injuries and Pat Cummins. However, whenever he got the chance to swing his arms, Ferguson didn't fail to impress and that's why KKR should look to buy him back.

4. Devdutt Padikkal (Rs 4 crore max)

Just like the release of Shubman Gill from KKR, Devdutt Padikkal's exit from RCB was also a shocking one. Since Gill has been drafted in by the Gujarat Lions, Padikkal could be the ideal man to replace him at the top of the order.

5. Shaik Rasheed (Rs 75 lakh max)

Vice-captain of India's 2022 U19 World Cup team, Shaik Rasheed was in fine-form for the team in the tournament. For past few years, KKR have struggled to find stability in their middle-order, and Rasheed could solve the problem, considering his performances in the U19 World Cup recently.
 

Topics mentioned in this article

Kolkata Knight Riders Shreyas Iyer David Warner Lockie Ferguson Devdutt Padikkal Shaik Rasheed IPL 2022 IPL Auction 2022 Cricket