Kagiso Rabada & Marcus Stoinis in Lucknow’s backup player list in IPL 2022: The developments from the field of cricket have begun to flow freely as the BCCI has finally granted a Letter of Intent (LOI) to the two new IPL teams. As per the recent reports, the Lucknow based IPL team is keeping Australian all-rounder Marcus Stoinis and South African pacer Kagiso Rabada as the backup option in the team.
The sources suggest that Lucknow is eyeing to bag the services of spinner Rashid Khan for the IPL 2022, however, if they fail to do so, Marcus Stoinis and Kagiso Rabada will be the other two immediate options to go for the franchise.
It’s noteworthy that Rashid Khan was released by Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH). Though the franchise wanted to retain him, the negotiations didn’t reach a better conclusion and Khan was eventually released.
Some sources claim that Rashid Khan wanted to be SRH’s first choice retention, but the franchise was clearly targeting Kane Williamson as their first choice player. This is reckoned as the major reason for the fallout between Rashid and SRH.
The Times of India reported that Lucknow and Ahmedabad, both, are interested in picking Rashid Khan and the spinner is in talks with both the new franchises. The report further added that Ahmedabad’s chances of getting Rashid’s services are a tad high as Lucknow has already bought KL Rahul for a massive sum.
KL Rahul is set to lead the Lucknow based IPL franchise, while TOI reported that all-rounder Hardik Pandya is likely to be the skipper of Ahmedabad, surpassing the likes of Shreyas Iyer.
As per the rules put in place by BCCI, both the new IPL franchise can name three players (two Indians and one foreign) under the special draft pick provision. The final list of three players must be submitted before the IPL 2022 Mega Auction.
Other notable names that are in contention to bag hefty contracts are wicketkeeper-batsman Ishan Kishan (released by Mumbai Indians), leg spinner Yuzvendra Chahal (released by RCB), leggie Rahul Chahar (released by MI) and Australian batsman David Warner (released by SRH).
More developments to come…..
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