IPL 2017 auction: MS Dhoni-led Rising Pune Supergiants should target England opener Jason Roy

The Rising Pune Supergiants were poor last season, finishing second last in their IPL debut in 2016. RPS, led by MS Dhoni, will look for a better performance from their players in IPL 2017, which is scheduled for April-May. But before that, Rising Pune Supergiants will be keen to buy some quality players in the IPL 2017 auction, scheduled for Saturday in Bengaluru.

Read: These players will be in high demand in IPL 2017 auction 

The Rising Pune Supergiants will need to be smart and buy players, who will strengthen their team to the core. One of the problems for them last season was the opening slot. They used different opening partners for Ajinkya Rahane, but they did not find much success. He opened alongside Faf du Plessis, Saurabh Tiwary and Usman Khawaja.

They signed Delhi Daredevils opener Mayank Agarwal in IPL 2017 trading window, but one look at other teams in the competition reflect RPS weak in the openers slot. They need players, who can hit the ball long way when the field restrictions are on and create that fear factor amongst the bowlers. Hence, the RPS should look at an openers in the IPL auction, who can give them quick starts, and Jason Roy is one of the best options available.

The English opener, who has thrown his hat in the ring for IPL 2017 auctions, has been one of the best performers for England in limited overs cricket of late. The opener knows only few things, score quick runs, hit fours and sixes, provide a flying start. These are all the ingredients, which Rising Pune Supergiants are looking in their opener with Rahane being more of a non-aggressor at the other end as he plays normal cricket shots. 

Roy has already showed his skills with the bat in the recently concluded ODI, where he looked good with the bat in the first six overs. He does not mind taking the aerial route against the spinners as well as the pacers, and loves to unsettle the opponents with his flurry of boundaries.

Roy scored three half-centuries on a trot in the ODI series, and it was in the manner in which he scored impressed all and sundry, taking the attack to the opposition. Though Roy might have not been stunning in the ongoing T20 series, his boundary-hitting ability must have been noticed by all IPL teams.

One expects a number of teams to bid for him in the IPL 2017 auctions, resulting, may be, in a bidding war too. But RPS should make sure that they get this player even if they have to spend big. 

If the RPS manage to sign Roy, it will strengthen their batting line-up immensely with players such as Dhoni, Steve Smith and Faf du Plessis in the middle order. With Roy at the top and a finisher like Dhoni can prove to be an ideal combination for Rising Pune Supergiants to have a great IPL 2017 season.