India Test regulars like Cheteswar Pujara and Ishant Sharma have also thrown their hat into the ring with base prices of Rs 50 and Rs 75 lakh respectively.
Defending champions Mumbai Indians will start as firm favourites against bottom-placed SunRisers Hyderabad in the IPL match in Delhi on Tuesday.
Struggling to be consistent, Kings XI Punjab will have their task cut out when they take on the in-form Chennai Super Kings.
Virat Kohli would hope for a turnaround when India take on an under-prepared Sri Lanka in the second Test in Bengaluru
He burst into the limelight with his heroics in the last edition of the Indian Premier League and Kings XI Punjab batsman Paul Valthaty said he will leave no stones unturned to turn on the heat on his rivals in IPL V which begins at Chennai on April 6.
Senior South Africa batsman Hashim Amla, who is finally getting to play in the Indian Premier League, feels he is now more comfortable with T20 format and there is no reason why conventional batsmen like him can't succeed in the shortest format. Amla was branded as a Test specialist early on in his career but 12 years after making his international debut, he is a valuable asset for the team across all formats. To add to that, his recent run of form in T20s has clearly shown how well he has adjusted to the slam bang version of the game. "There has been a lot of T20 cricket of late and that helps. Yes you do try to hit a few, innovate but the basics remain the same," said Amla, who joined Kings XI Punjab as a late replacement for Shaun Marsh.
This is his 'Test' and for Kohli, a century to mark a 'century' is something he would be craving
Kings XI Punjab head coach Sanjay Bangar believes out-of-favour opener Virender Sehwag is capable of making a national comeback despite being out of the Indian team for nearly two years now.
Virtually out of the play-off race, bottom-placed Sunrisers Hyderabad will hope to keep their new-found momentum intact when they face table toppers Chennai Super Kings in the IPL, in Sharjah, on Thursday.
Ashwin has been one of the big advocates of 'Mankading' and his dismissal of Jos Buttler during Kings XI Punkab's IPL encounter against Rajasthan Royals grabbed headlines last year.
Both teams have been more than disappointing thus far in the IPL and need a win to revive their respective campaigns.
'I was shown something about him practicing at the nets for Mumbai Indians so I don't know what kind of injury it is. 'If the injury was serious he wouldn't even be padded up.'
Purnendu Maji and Srinivas Bhogle list IPL 2020's 50 Most Valuable Players up to Game 34.
KXIP are riding a roller-coaster ride, having to endure a controversy involving their captain Ravichandran Ashwin who 'Mankaded' Rajasthan Royals batsman Jos Buttler in their first match, an act which was legal but criticised by some as against the 'Spirit of Cricket'.
Russell was on three off five balls when he was bowled by Mohammed Shami with an inch-perfect yorker on off-stump but it was declared a no ball because the side had three fielders, instead of the mandatory four, inside the circle in the 17th over.
When Vinoo Mankad ran out Bill Brown, he created cricketing history -- and eternal controversy.
Purnendu Maji and Srinivas Bhogle list IPL 2020's 50 Most Valuable Players up to Match 25.
He may have had to relinquish his captaincy and a place in the side during the World Cup, but Kings XI's George Bailey utilized his 'spare' time to prepare himself for the IPL.
The Pune outfit is presently languishing at the sixth spot in the eight-team standings with just four points.
Kings XI Punjab would aim to keep the winning run going when they take on South Africa's Cape Cobras in a Group B encounter of the Champions League in Mohali on Sunday.
'You can't chase 190 every time. Bowlers have to do something. We haven't won any 4 p.m. games. It's a learning curve for us. Spinners have to step up'
'Do not forget the role of Anil Kumble! Anil Kumble has been a fighter all his cricketing career, you could see when he went out with a broken jaw and bowled, and that spirit is seen in the KXIP'
Rajasthan Royals, struggling at the penultimate spot on the points table after two wins and four straight defeats, need something special against Sunrisers Hyderabad in Sunday's IPL match in Dubai.
Yuvraj Singh has emerged as the costliest cricketer in the IPL 8 players' auction, bought for a record Rs 16 crore (USD 2.57 million approx) by Delhi Daredevils.
A depleted Rajasthan Royals will have an onerous task of stopping the mighty CSK
Royal Challengers head coach Simon Katich was all praise for the South African after he single-handedly won the IPL game against Rajasthan Royals for them, in Dubai on Saturday.
Washington Sundar has played a major role in Royal Challengers Bangalore's success so far this IPL season, with skipper Virat Kohli using him mostly in the Powerplay overs. He has taken five wickets in seven games, but at an astonishing economy rate of 4.90.
Rajasthan Royals' Robin Uthappa admitted that the batters in the side could have taken more time to adjust to the wicket of Dubai.
The Bangladesh Test and T20 captain was handed a two-year suspension by the ICC for failing to report three corrupt approaches.
Rajasthan Royals batsman Rahul Tewatia says he knew he had the self-belief to pull off victory against SunRisers Hyderabad.
For KKR, the biggest cause of concern will be the availability of big-hitter Andre Russell, who hurt his knee when he dived into the advertisement boards after missing a catch on Saturday.
Delhi finished their torrid campaign with a 13-run win that not only saw them end with 10 points from 14 games, but also ended Mumbai's journey.
With it's scandalous past, still fresh in the minds of fans and critics alike, the Indian Premier League (IPL) organisers will look to ensure that the focus remains firmly on cricket when the cash-rich event gets underway with a glamorous opening ceremony on Tuesday.
Sandeep Lamichhane continued his rapid rise in international cricket as he was named in the ICC World XI squad to take on the West Indies in a charity T20 International on May 31.
'It is not due to my effort that I am sitting out of the team, it is due to the supply and demand that the team requires.' Ravichandran Ashwin tries to figure out why he is not being considered for the Indian team in ODIs and T20Is.
Five Indian players to watch in the Test series against Australia, which begins in Adelaide on December 17:
Rohit is confident that he would come good and has asked both critics and media to spare him the constant scrutiny.
Looking to keep their winning run intact, table-toppers Rajasthan Royals face a stern SunRisers Hyderabad test in their fourth match of the Indian Premier League in Visakhapatnam on Thursday.
Check out the star arrivals.
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