Yuvraj Singh in all probability will be reunited with Indian captain Virat Kohli as Royal Challengers Bangalore are keen to rope in the left-hander in the IPL 2019 auctions slated to take place in Jaipur on Tuesday. The only obstacle between RCB and Yuvraj might be Kolkata Knight Riders, who too are looking for an experienced middle-order batsman to bolster their batting.
Yuvraj, who fetched a record Rs 16 crore deal in his prime, was bought by Kings XI Punjab for his base price of Rs 2 crore at the auction held before the last edition in January but an unsatisfactory season saw him being released ahead of the 2019 auctions, sparking rumours that IPL had seen the last of Yuvraj
Wah Cricket, however, has learnt that the chances of Yuvraj going unsold in the IPL 2019 auctions, is very slim. According to sources two franchises – Royal Challengers Bangalore and Kolkata Knight Riders are interested in the 37-year-old.
The auctions, which begin from 3.30 pm on Tuesday, therefore could witness a battle between RCB and KKR to get a hold of Yuvraj. RCB have got their noses slightly in ahead because of the purse. They have the luxury of spending INR 18.5 crores compared to KKR’s 15.2 crores.
RCB’s decision to release Brendon McCullum, Mandeep Singh has left them with a void in the middle order. Though an opener, Mandeep had played in the middle-order for RCB in last IPL. Yuvraj, therefore, could be an ideal choice for RCB, which has strong overseas all-rounders Moeen Ali, Colin de Grandhomme and Marcus Stoinis up its sleeves.
Yuvraj had represented RCB in 2014 and played a couple of match-winning innings for the franchise before being released and brought by the Delhi Daredevils (no Delhi Capitals) for a whopping 16 crores.
Meanwhile, KKR too are in the lookout for an experienced middle order player. The franchise are a bit thin on batting options when it comes to their Indian recruits. The likes of Nitish Rana and captain Dinesh Karthik did fare well in the last edition but they lacked depth in batting towards the business end of the tournament.
Yuvraj, who provided a glimpse of his glory days in the Ranji Trophy match against Tamil Nadu, scoring 41 off 34 and picking up 2 wickets with the ball, has kept his base price at INR 1 crore.