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IPL Auction 2018 proved to be one of the biggest business days in the game of Cricket. Crores spent and players were pocketed into the tables of 8 IPL teams which will compete for the one goal of being the Champion team of IPL 2018. The mega event will start on April 4, 2018, in Mumbai Wankhede Stadium. It is never just about winning, it is also about picking the right players who will be a part of the growth of the team in all aspects. So, here we discuss the 5 best picks by IPL teams in IPL Auction 2018.
Some players were picked for their expertise in T20, and some were to fill the vacant spaces the teams had in the last 10 years of IPL.
There were a lot of Unsold players who were expected to be picked, at least!
Also, there were some surprise picks which created a little buzz among the fans.
From CSK’s strategy of going for the experienced and proved players to Rajasthan Royal’s no-more Moneyball spend in Auctions, it was so clear that the teams have worked hard and also, smarter too, before getting into the IPL Auction table.
One thing is for sure, IPL is growing in both the business and the game aspect.
Check, How IPL teams decide on picking the players for their team?
Ok, now coming back, let’s check on the best picks (according to CricIndeed), which could benefit the teams in multiple ways.
1. Jaydev Unadkat (India) – picked by Rajasthan Royals
I know some of you might not side with me as this is one of the most expensive moves by Rajasthan Royals to fetch Jaydev Unadkat for 11.5 Crores. But at the end of the day, any players’ cost comes at their demand.
Every team needs him as one can see the bidding war for Unadkat from almost every team. The most interesting thing about IPL Auction is its uncertainty.
RTMs, player’s multi-skill ability, budget constraints, and the fandom can make any strategies go for a toss and puts you in the place to take a call at the last moment.
But the move for Unadkat is an expected and a planned one. Every team must have got their plan for picking Jaydev Unadkat and it was Rajasthan Royals, at the end of the day, wanted him more than anyone else.
Especially the idea must be brought together with the thoughts of their only retained player in the Pre-Auction retention, Steve Smith, who will captain the team RR in IPL 2018. Steve Smith knows very well about Unadkat’s abilities when the later played under Steve Smith in Pune Super Giants in the last year’s IPL.

What does Jaydev Unadkat bring into the team?
If a player is of that high demand, he must be bringing in great values to the team.
With Ben Stokes already into the team, Jaydev Unadkat will prove vital at any part of the game whenever he comes to bowl.
His hideous slower deliveries are still un-cracked, and his abilities to make the batsmen play to his plans makes him dangerous than most of the other bowlers.
Also, as an Indian bowler, he will make the team and the captain (who is a foreigner himself) care less for the 4 Foreigner teams.
Knowing him, he has also improved his batting ability in the last couple of years, thereby adding to the lower order strength.
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D’Arcy Short (Australia) picked by Rajasthan Royals
For the people who have not been following the recently ended Big Bash Tournament in Australia, this inclusion might come in as a bit shocking.
D’Arcy Short has beaten almost every batting records in the Big Bash history playing for his team Hobart Hurricanes in Big Bash 2018.
The heroics at Big Bash earned him the national call too in the T20 series against England, where Short played as an opener along with David Warner. He had a decent outing as he scored 196 runs in 5 innings he played with a high score of 76.
He is a handy bowler too, thereby adding to the team’s all-rounding asset too.

What value does D’arcy Short bring into Rajasthan Royals?
Rajasthan Royals with their come back after two years made sure they are no more the Money Ball team which they were used to be.
They brought in D’arcy Short into the team knowing the fact that Short will enjoy batting in India.
He is a hard hitter of the cricket ball, reminding me of Mathew Hayden when he hits the ball so hard as bang.
You know how Mathew Hayden enjoyed batting in India. Hope it goes the same with D’arcy too.
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Evin Lewis (West Indies) picked by Mumbai Indians
When Evin Lewis name came under the IPL hammer this time, I was wondering what had this guy not done to get himself a big paycheck.
Evin Lewis has got 2 T20 International Centuries both against India. And his strike rate after 14 T20 International matches is around 154.
No surprise the powerful striker has got his inspiration from a person very much similiar to himself. In an interview with ESPNCricinfo when Lewis was asked why he chose Gayle as his mentor, he said,”I hit a lot of sixes, big sixes like him.”
Mumbai Indians picked him after a short bid-war from the other opponents, for 3.8 Crores.
And, his name arriving quite late in the bidding could be a reason for the bidding amount going low(relatively).
Interestingly, Lewis scored a 46-ball 62 against Mumbai Indians itself in a semi-final match of the Champions League-2013 playing for Trinidad & Tobago.

What does Evin Lewis add to the Champion team, Mumbai Indians?
Evin Lewis is a natural opener in T20 format.
He strikes the new ball clean and hard. Imagine Lewis opening along Rohit Sharma!!! Can’t-Wait…
He is a good player of spin, unlike most modern West Indian batsmen.
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Rashid Khan (Afghanistan) picked by Sunrisers Hyderabad- RTM
Undoubtedly, Rashid Khan was the most wanted leg-spinner, in this case, spinner in the IPL Auction 2018.
When SRH failed to retain him during the Pre-Auction Retention, I was bit surprised. But to everyone’s expectation, SRH retained him through RTM, when King XI Punjab won his bid at 9 Crores.
By this deal, SRH has saved 3 Crores by picking him through RTM, instead of retaining him at Pre-Auction IPL. Check here how!!!
VVS Laxman knew very well how valuable he is to their bowling line-up.
With Shakib-Al-Hasan playing along with him in SRH, they could form a dangerous Spin-duo for the team in IPL 2018.

What does Rashid Khan bring in to Sunrisers Hyderabad?
Rashid Khan, who also played for SRH in last year was their pick of the bowlers, picking 17 wickets off 14 matches he played in 2017.
He bowled with an economy rate around 6, striking every 19 balls.
He is the Most Wicket taker in the recently ended Australian Big Bash tournament for Adelaide Strikers.
Also, he is one of the vital parts of his team’s road to semi-finals.
No wonder he has become the Captain of his national team.
He is ruling wherever he goes, and there is no reason a team can tell no to this 19-year-old KID.
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Chris Woakes (England) picked by Royal Challengers Bangalore
Chris Woakes picked by Royal Challengers Bangalore for a whopping 7.4 Crores.
There is a lot of difference between A Champion team and a team of Champions!!!
The above quote describes the IPL team RCB to its root.
RCB has always been the best team in papers. With the service of some of the bests in the game like Virat Kohli, Chris Gayle, AB de Villiers & Mitchell Starc, they cannot ask for anything.
Unfortunately, they have never won an IPL title so far, coming close twice as runners.
They have played some brilliant cricket, some really huge scores, but still, they can’t find the limelight at the end.
I would say, one of the real reason a team like RCB struggles in a T20 cricket is a lack of perfect All-Rounders. And maybe, Chris Woakes could be the answer for that.
Woakes, the English bowling all-rounder, one can say, has come up with some excellent match winning performances in Australia recently. Especially with his batting skills, he has contributed to the team’s winning more than once.
Also, without Mitchell Starc in their team this time, RCB were always short of their pace bowling cordon. The had to rely mostly on Yuzvendra Chahal to contribute almost every time.
Now with Woakes, they might find their key.

What does Chris Woakes bring into RCB?
With AB de Villiers being the permanent player in the team, RCB is expected to play with Brendon Mccullum & Quinton De Kock to open the batting.
In that case, they can afford to play only one foreign bowler among Chris Woakes, Colin de Grandhomme, Nathan Coulter-Nile & M Ali.
In any day, I would prefer Chris Woakes among the 4 as he ticks more boxes as a T20 player.
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