Ahmedabad IPL 2022 squad players: Hardik Pandya has been chosen as captain of Ahmedabad for the franchise’s first season in the IPL.
After receiving the ‘letter of intent’ from the IPL board last week, the Ahmedabad-based franchise owned by CVC Capitals has reportedly named India’s flamboyant all-rounder Hardik Pandya as captain for his first appearance at the IPL. IPL this year.
The franchise had already named former India pacer Ashish Nehra and former South African skipper Gary Kirsten as the team’s head coach and mentor respectively earlier this month, while former England striker Vikram Solanki has was named team leader.
It should be mentioned that Ahmedabad, alongside Lucknow, were supposed to submit the names of the three players drafted into their respective squads by January 22. The two new franchises had the opportunity to negotiate and enlist a maximum of three players in their team. team ahead of the mega auction which is expected to take place in February next month.
IPL Ahmedabad 2022 squad players: Hardik Pandya named captain; Rashid Khan, Shubman Gill also participated
According to EspnCricinfo, alongside Hardik, Ahmedabad management also completed the remaining deals as Afghan star spinner Rashid Khan, and former Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) opening hitter Shubman Gill were drafted in as their other two draft players.
The third player in the franchise from Ahmedabad is therefore Shubhman Gill.
Hardik, Rashid & Gill is a good start. They can build around that at the auction.
Which means Ishan Kishan is going to the mega auction. Expect it to get big!
— KSR (@KShriniwasRao) January 17, 2022
Hailing from Gujarat, Pandya may well act as a big brand for the franchise, coupled with a reputation that cannot be ignored. However, struggling with form and a prolonged injury problem, the versatile former Mumbai Indians (MI) player is far from his best. He bowled as a bottom all last season for MI, scoring at an average of just 14.11 over 11 innings, without bowling at all.
On the other hand, Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) management had raised many eyebrows when Rashid Khan was not retained by them as the latter reportedly had an issue with Kane Williamson retained as the first choice. Adding Rashid to the side before the mega auction may have been a huge boon to the fledgling franchise.
Shubman Gill, was chosen as the franchise’s third draft pick, after catching many eyes with impressive and notable performances for KKR over the past three league seasons.
How much will Hardik Pandya, Rashid Khan and Shubman Gill be paid?
The two new teams were supposed to pick their three draft players from a cap of INR 33 Crore; INR 15 Crore, INR 11 Crore and INR 7 Crore for the first, second and third draft players respectively.
However, according to EspnCricinfo, Ahmedabad decided to pay both Hardik and Rashid the same amount – INR 15 Crore, while Gill was negotiated at a price of INR 7 Crore.
