Chennai Super Kings won the 16th edition of the Indian Premier League and bagged their fifth trophy. Now, they will be defending their title in the IPL 2024. CSK will play the tournament’s opener on March 22 against Royal Challengers Bangalore. This season will be even grander as some big names like Mitchell Starc, Rishabh Pant, and others have returned to the tournament.
But there are some iconic bowlers who will miss the competition as they didn’t get bought at the IPL 2024 auction. However, because an IPL season is two months long and we have seen many cricketers get injured, there is a slight chance of a return to the league as a replacement. Just like, Kolkata Knight Riders have signed Phil Salt as a replacement for Jason Roy, there might be other signings as well.
Batsmen Who can Come in as Replacements in IPL 2024
Five Batters who can come in as replacements in the IPL 2024:
1. Rassie van der Dussen (South Africa)
Rassie van der Dussen went unsold at the IPL 2024 auction. He even didn’t play in the IPL 2022. But he had a great ODI World Cup 2023 in India, and he carried that form to the SA20 and even in the ongoing PSL 2024. Van de Dussen finished the PSL 2024 as the second-highest run scorer with 364 runs and is in good form. IPL franchises always make note of such players, and we might see him making his comeback in case of any injury.
2. Steve Smith (Australia)
For a player who has played over 100 IPL games and taken a team to the final as a captain, getting unsold is always a surprise. Here, we are talking about Steve Smith. The veteran Australian has been part of this tournament since 2012, but he played his last season in 2021. So far, he has played 103 games and scored 2485 runs with 1 century and 11 half-centuries. He is a brilliant top-order batter who can bat anywhere.
3. Sarfaraz Khan (India)
Sarfaraz Khan recently made his debut for India in the five-match Test series against England. In five innings he played, he scored a half-century three times. Adding to that, his ability to score quickly against pace and spin must have caught the attention of some IPL teams. Sarfaraz has been part of the IPL since 2015 and has played for RCB, PBKS, and DC, but now he is looking an improved batter, and he can certainly make his IPL return if required.
4. Finn Allen (New Zealand)
Finn Allen was part of RCB for the last two seasons. But he didn’t get a single game for them because they had a settled opening pair, and Finn is an opener. Hence, the franchise released him, and no one picked him at the IPL 2024 auction. But since then, he has been tremendous at the international level. He was the highest scorer in the five-match T20 series against Pakistan and has scored the most runs for his team in the shorter format since then. With his ability to clear any boundary, IPL teams can sign him as a backup opener for their team.
5. Karun Nair (India)
With not many slots available for overseas stars, some of the team prefers Indian players to sign if needed as replacements. But an Indian player with IPL experience is very limited. In such cases, one name that can make a return to the IPL 2024 can be India’s triple-centurion in test Karun Nair. The right-hander has played 76 IPL games and scored 1496 runs but went unsold at the auction. He is a bankable middle-order batter who can play well against spin.