The Indian Premier League T20 carnival witnesses national team mates sharing dressing rooms but also playing against their fellow countrymates as the battle unfolds between the eight franchises to reign supreme as the champions of the IPL.
Over the years the IPL has been graced with the finest T20 stalwarts who have raised the very benchmark of excellence and enthralled fans with their spectacular performances.
The thirteenth edition of the IPL being staged in the UAE will also witness a semblance of Indian and overseas stalwarts who will don the jerseys of their respective franchises with pride and give it their best shot while performing the roles earmarked for them by their teams .
Over the twelve seasons of the IPL, the Australians have always had healthy participation in the high profile league and the thirteenth edition in the UAE is no different from the usual norm.
While the likes of David Warner, Steve Smith and Shane Watson continue to be the nucleus of their respective franchises, Pat Cummins, Glen Maxwell and Aaron Finch were snapped for exorbitant prizes by KKR, KXIP and RCB resp.. to bolster their squads for season 13 of the cash rich T20 league.
So let us have a look at where are the major Australian cricketing superstars playing across the eight teams in the IPL 2020
1. DAVID WARNER (SRH)
David Warner is back to captaining the Sunrisers Hyderabad in season 13 of the IPL. The belligerent Australian opener will once again spearhead the batting for the 'Orange Army'.
Warner who opens the batting with Englishman Jonny Bairstow will look to give those fiery starts up the order and provide his team with solid platforms to set herculean totals or chase down targets.
Warner has been the batting lynchpin for the 2016 champs, scoring heavily over the past few seasons and winning the Orange Cap thrice.
2. Aaron Finch (RCB)
The Australian T20 skipper is opening the batting for Virat Kohli-led Royal Challengers Bangalore in IPL 2020. The aggressive opener who has played across eight franchises in a decade long IPL career was bought by RCB for Rs 4.5 crores to strengthen their batting.
Finch's inclusion will bolster the 'Red and Gold' Brigade's batting which boasts of Indian skipper Virat Kohli and Proteas batting wizard AB De Villiers.
3. Steve Smith (RR)
The Australian run scoring machine is skippering Rajasthan Royals in Season 13 of the IPL. Smith who can open the batting and play in the middle order as well will be an integral element in 'Royals' batting lineup which also features Jos Buttler, Robin Uttappa and Sanju Samson.
Besides his prolific run scoring ability with the willow, Rajasthan always stands to gain with Smith's invaluable experience and analytical cricket brain.
4. Glen Maxwell (KXIP)
Kings Eleven Punjab (KXIP) will be bolstered by the return of Australian explosive all-rounder Glen Maxwell. The multi dimensional 'Maxi' is an outright match winner with his destructive stroke play and lofty hitting in the middle order and can be handy with his spin too.
The pugnacious strokemaker would look to replicate his stellar form with the willow which helped KXIP reach the finals against KKR in 2014 edition of the IPL.
5. Shane Watson (CSK)
A veteran in the IPL, Shane Watson has etched his name as one of the greatest all-rounders in the league during his stints with RCB and now CSK. Watson's opening exploits with the willow will be critical to CSK's fortunes in the tournament.
The big and burly multi-dimensional batsman can also provide the late impetus to the innings in the lower middle order with his crispy ball striking. CSK won't mind seeing him bowling his medium pace which has yielded wickets for the 3-time champions.
6. Marcus Stoinis (DC)
Marcus Stoinis comes into the IPL on the back of a highly successful Big Bash League. The Australian all-rounder snapped up by Delhi Capitals in the 2020 auctions will look to provide impetus down the order with his ability to finish innings with a bang.
Delhi Capitals will also look towards Stoinis for providing depth to their seam bowling as the Aussie is pretty effective with his military medium pace.
7.Alex Carey (DC)
Delhi Capitals roped in Alex Carey for Rs 2.4 crores in the IPL Auction held last December in Kolkata. The Australian wicket-keeper is a handy batsman in the lower middle order with an ability to keep the scoreboard moving and provide the late flourish down the order.
The left-handed Carey will also give DC an alternative for their wicket-keeping duties along with their preferred number one choice Rishabh Pant.
8. Pat Cummins (KKR)
Coming into Season 13 with the tag of the most expensive overseas player, the Rs 15.5 crore-tagged Pat Cummins will spearhead the pace battery for Kolkata Knight Riders in IPL 2020.
The Australian speedster is leading the fast bowling unit with Andre Russell, Kamlesh Nagarkotti and Shivam Mavi. Cummins has ability to produce some game changing cameos with his lofty ball striking and hence will add depth to the batting.
9. Adam Zampa:(RCB)
The Australian leg spinner was signed by Royal Challengers Bangalore as a replacement for left arm seamer Kane Richardson. Zampa will bolster RCB's spin armoury which comprises frontline leg spinner Yuzvendra Chahal and Washington Sundar.
10. James Pattinson (MI)
The big and burly Australian seamer bowls the heavy ball and racks up some serious pace to hurry up batsmen. Pattinson will bring in variety to the already potent Mumbai Indians attack which has the likes of Jasprit Bumrah, Trent Boult, Hardik Pandya and Dhaval Kulkarni.
Pattinson hits the deck hard and can play the perfect foil to Boult and Bumrah who rely more on their seam and swing.
11. Josh Hazlewood (CSK)
Chennai Super Kings have strengthened their bowling attack by roping in Australian speedster Josh Hazlewood. Hazlewood has the ability to choke the opposition for runs with his immaculate line and length.
The tall and lanky seamer also has the ability to strike early as he gets to seam around the new ball by hitting the deck hard. Josh will lend variety to the CSK pace attack which has quality seamers in Deepak Chahar, Sam Curran, Lungi Ngidi, Shardul Thakur, and Dwayne Bravo in its ranks.
Besides the leading T20 stars, the other Australians featuring in the thirteenth edition of the IPL are fast bowler Nathan Coulter Nile (MI), explosive opener Chris Lynn (MI), wicket-keeper batsman Josh Philippe (RCB), off spinner Chris Green (KKR) and left-arm spinner Daniel Sams (DC).