The final list of players who will go under the hammer in the upcoming IPL auctions on January 27 and 28 has been pruned from 1,122 who expressed interest to 578. Out of this, 360 are Indian players and 218 foreign. With a total of 18 players already retained by the eight franchises, and there being squad size limit of 25, a maximum of 182 players (out of the 578) will be traded during the event in Bengaluru.
Away from the usual names that turn heads, teams could also have a look at slightly unconventional but solid T20 options in Kane Williamson and Joe Root, who makes his IPL auction debut this year. Among the 16 marquee players, there is also one (Mitchell Starc) capable of leading the any of the eight bowling attacks - and should lead to a tussle.
Apart from the marquee players, some others too have set their base price as INR 2 crore. Amongst these, Yuzvendra Chahal could be one chased by multiple franchises. The wrist spinner has done a fine job for RCB for a few years and enjoyed a successful 2017 in India colours. Others in this list include KL Rahul, Murali Vijay, Kedar Jadhav, Dinesh Karthik, Robin Uthappa and Karn Sharma - each with considerable IPL experience.