Proteas players past and present lined up for the 2022 Indian Premier League auction. Some were bought. Others were not. It’s an interesting mix of South Africans that will be headed to the IPL later this year.
First up, the Sunrisers Hyderabad sprung for Marco Jansen and Aiden Markram. Jansen spent one season with the Mumbai Indians, while Markram used to be with the Punjab Kings. The Sunrisers have only won the IPL once and are looking to repeat that success this time. They will likely be captained by Kane Williamson. The New Zealander could open the batting, too, in the absence of Australian counterpart David Warner. SRH are done with Warner.
It looked as though Lungi Ngidi would be passed up this season. He had some reasonable success with the Chennai Super Kings previously, but was overlooked on day one of the 2022 auction. Ngidi, however, eventually went to the Delhi Capitals. He could effectively replace Kagiso Rabada with the new ball for Delhi. The Capitals love buying South African fast bowlers. They have Anrich Nortje as well. He was retained from the past season.
Rabada is heading to the Punjab Kings. They are still chasing a maiden IPL title. Perhaps this will be their year. They will probably need Rabada firing on all cylinders if they are to lift the trophy at the end of the tournament. Punjab have been perennial underachievers. That could change this time. We’ll see. Look out for them on Lottoland Sportland tournament and match-winner markets when the IPL nears and gets underway.
David Miller is another South African who almost had to do without an IPL contract this year. After many years with Punjab and a brief stint with the Rajasthan Royals, Miller was overlooked on day one of the 2022 player auction before landing a deal on day two. The Gujarat Titans are new to the tournament and wanted Miller to be with them for their opening season. Whether he can add real value to their middle order remains in the balance.
The Lucknow Super Giants are also new to the IPL, which will comprise 10 teams this year. For their first time in the tournament, they’ve chosen Quinton de Kock as their primary wicketkeeper and likely opening batsman. With KL Rahul set to captain the side and open the batting, the Super Giants were quick to publicly note that they wanted to give Rahul a bit of breathing space by not having him keep wicket. De Kock can do that for them.
Two Proteas will be undertaking maiden stints in the IPL. Rassie van der Dussen was bought by the Rajasthan Royals and Dwaine Pretorius has been purchased by Chennai. Fans of van der Dussen can look forward to some calculated middle-order hitting. Pretorius has been trialled up the batting order for North West in South Africa. Maybe CSK will do the same. Regardless, Pretorius is a solid option with the ball as well. He can bowl an economical allotment of four overs, which could come at the start or toward the end of the innings.
