Will New Teams Outdo The Old In The Auctions?

The IPL 2022 mega auctions will be a 10-team affair. Lucknow and Ahmedabad are the two news teams in the league. They have picked 3 players each from the draft that was made available to them. These two teams will battle it out against the established eight teams in the auctions. The mega auctions this year will be a spicier affair. Here Is Will New Teams Outdo The Old In The Auction?

Will New Teams Outdo The Old In The Auction?

How have the auctions evolved over the years?

The inaugural mega auctions in 2008 transformed world cricket. Apart from Chennai, the rest other 7 teams had icon players in their ranks. They used this shortcoming to make arguably the biggest and the best decision in IPL history. CSK managed to buy MS Dhoni in the auctions for a record INR 6 crores. He was the costliest IPL signing in the inaugural season. 

How did the first auction pan out and the eventual result?

Teams went with the flow and tried assembling players rather than building a team. The novelty of auctions had overwhelmed the franchises. Rajasthan Royals, the team that had spent the least in the auctions went on to win the Inaugural IPL season. This bust the myth of money overpowering victory. Teams realised they needed more than just money in the auctions to succeed. They needed strategies!

The auctions from thereon:

Teams started focusing on analysis, strategies, and data in the auctions. They went as granular as possible when it came to picking up players. Stars no longer dominated the auctions. It was the players who made the difference that drove big bucks. Fates started changing overnight. The auctions became a much more glamorous event, at times even more than the eventual tournament. 

How different the 2022 mega auctions will be?

The IPL 2022 mega auction is going to be one wholesome affair. BCCI, the parent body is planning to conduct the auctions on February 12-13. The mega auctions will be a 2-day affair. A total of 1200 players have registered for the mega auctions. These players will go under the hammer. 10 teams will be bidding fiercely to get the best of the lot. Never before had there been this much buzz surrounding an IPL auction. 

How important is the 2022 mega auction?

The auction that was initially scheduled to be held in 2021 had to be pushed a year back owing to the pandemic. Hence the desperation of fans to see how the teams pan out is even more. This auction will clearly dictate terms for the teams in the coming decade. The better the auctions for all teams, the better it is for the league. As a closely fought auction results in a highly competitive league. 

Can the new teams fight the old guard in the auction?

Lucknow and Ahmedabad head into the auctions with a purse balance of INR 58 crores and INR 52 crores respectively. These new teams have to build their squad from the scratch. Hence this auction becomes even more important for them. The players they select will go on to define the team’s culture in years to come. They are effectively starting a race that the eight established teams had done a decade or so ago. 

What is the challenge that lies in front of the new teams?

The new teams have a lot of catching up to do in the mega auctions. They have to select a balanced set of players across different categories. The advantage that they have can emulate the success formula of teams like Mumbai and Chennai. These new teams will look to give that proven model their own spin. A lot rises on the success of these two teams starting the auctions. If they excel in the mega auctions outwitting the older force, we will have a fantastic IPL on the cards.

As the IPL embarks on a 10-team journey, this mega auction has to get most things right for the league to excel. We can’t wait for this journey to begin.