IPL 2023 auction: Suresh Raina believes THIS 15-year-old spinner from Afghanistan can be a future superstar

Written By DNA Web Team | Updated: Dec 22, 2022, 08:17 PM IST

As many as 991 cricketers registered themselves for the auction, but only 405 were shortlisted, including 273 Indian players.

Suresh Raina has named Mujtaba Yousuf of Jammu and Kashmir and 15-year-old Allah Mohammad of Afghanistan as the players who can ignite the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023 auction.

Samarth Vyas, a bowler from Saurashtra who excelled in Syed Mushtaq Ali and hit the most sixes (22) throughout the competition, was also mentioned by Raina. In the just finished Vijay Hazare Trophy, he added a double century as well, assisting Saurashtra in capturing the title.

"I played with Mujtaba (Yousuf) in the Syed Mushtaq Ali. As a left-arm fast bowler, he has good action and good control of his swing. Then you have Samarth Vyas from Saurashtra who has scored at a strike rate of over 150 and was among the top five run-getters in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy and just won the Vijay Hazare Trophy. He is a very good future prospect," Suresh Raina said while speaking in JioCinema’s IPL Player Auction expert discussion.

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"But watch out for Allah Mohammad. At 6ft 2 inches and 15 years old, he is an off-spinner with a big heart. A lot of talent is coming from Afghanistan," Raina added

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A 15-year-old Afghan right-arm off-spinner named Allah Mohammad Ghazanfar enrolled for the Indian Premier League auction which is scheduled on December 23 in Kochi. The youngest player in the IPL auction, Ghazanfar, had already signed up for the Big Bash League auction but had no takers.

Ghazanfar is  6-foot-2-inch  who hails from the Paktia province's Zurmat area. Given his height, Dawlat Ahmadzai, a former Afghanistan captain, watched him as he transitioned from a fast bowler to a spinner.

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