IPL 2025 Mega Auction: From Ishan Kishan To Jake Fraser-McGurk, Top 5 Players Punjab Kings Can Target
While PBKS are expected to splash the big bucks on marquee names, the Ricky Ponting-coached side will also look to grab talented youngsters as they go in search of a maiden IPL crown.
Punjab Kings head into the much-awaited IPL mega auction ahead of the 2025 season of the money-rich T20 extravaganza with the highest purse amongst all franchises set to take the tables as 574 players go under the hammer.
PBKS, who opted to retain just two uncapped players, Shashank Singh and Prabhsimran Singh, ahead of the auction have Rs.110 Crore at their disposal to build a team that has the potential to challenge for the coveted title.
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While they are expected to splash the big bucks on marquee names, the Ricky Ponting-coached side will also look to grab talented youngsters as they go in search of a maiden IPL crown.
Ashutosh Sharma
The 26-year-old turned out to be an absolute revelation in the previous edition of the IPL as he took the league by storm with his breakneck pace of scoring runs. His swashbuckling batting proved crucial at multiple junctures across the campaign for the PBKS and the team management would definitely like to bring back the attacking batter to their fold.
Reuniting the youngster along with the retained players would solidify their batting order with a core of players who understand the workings of the franchise thanks to their experiences.
Jake Fraser-Mcgurk
The young Aussie set the stage ablaze in his debut IPL campaign as he spearheaded the batting order for the Delhi Capitals and caught the attention with his accelerated rate of run-scoring and his lethal shot-making abilities.
With Ponting at the helm of the Punjabi unit, a union between the fledgling Australian batter with the World Cup winning captain seems like a concoction made for entertainment and multi-fold success.
Fraser-McGurk is certain to cause a bidding war when the auctioneer bellows the 22-year-old’s name on the microphone, but that could play right into the hands of PBKS who enter the auction room with the deepest pockets.
Ishan Kishan
A certified menace at the top of the order, the 26-year-old southpaw is a highly-prized asset and has proven his talents for posting runs at a quick pace during his trophy-laden time with the Mumbai Indians. He has been part of two winning campaigns with the MI and has afforded his side a positive start more often than not.
If the PBKS manage to rope in the maverick opener, they could have the option of opening the innings with a right-left combination of Kishan and Prabhsimran with the added advantage of having batters of contrasting styles at the head of the innings.
Rahmanullah Gurbaz
Gurbaz has been at the forefront of the Afghanistan revolution in limited overs cricket over the last decade and has demonstrated his ability to cut it at the very top level with his performances in the most lucrative franchise league over the years for sides including Gujarat Titans and Kolkata Knight Riders.
At just 22 years of age, the batter has a long and promising career ahead of him and the addition of the overseas batter could prove beneficial for the title-chasing Punjab.
Washington Sundar
The Indian all-rounder can turn out to be a prized commodity at the auction for his ability to serve the side that manages to pick him up with both the bat and the ball handsomely.
He has managed to improve steadily over the years and his performances have been promisingly consistent when called upon by his team. Though only sporadically used across the last iteration of the tournament by the Sunrisers Hyderabad, and a previous spell with the Royal Challengers Bengaluru which did not bear much fruit, the 25-year-old could be poised for a move that could serve to be a pivotal moment in his career in the shortest format of the game.
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