IPL opportunity for U.P. stars to impress national selectors
LUCKNOW: Although major changes in Team India for the upcoming ICC Twenty20 World Cup, scheduled in the USA and the West Indies this June, are almost unlikely as there are plenty of pre-decided claimants for all the spots, the upcoming Indian Premier League will offer an opportunity to nine Uttar Pradesh cricketers to impress the national selectors if they put in an extraordinary performance in the cash-rich league, starting March 22.
Even if not selected for the World Cup, talented players will surely be considered for Team India’s future T20Is.
Both experienced pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar of Meerut and spinner Piyush Chawla of Aligarh are expected to do well at this IPL, but they may not get a Team India call for the T20 World Cup. Kumar will play for Sunrisers Hyderabad and Chawla for Mumbai Indians.
Chinaman bowler Kuldeep Yadav and Team India’s new match-finisher Rinku Singh look certain to get Team India berths for the T20 World Cup. The two have been consistent in the shortest format of the game. With 233 wickets in this format, including 59 international T20 wickets in 35 matches, Kanpur’s Kuldeep is expected to be the first choice as spinner for the World Cup along with leg spinner Ravi Bishnoi.
Just before the fifth and the final Test against England, lefthand batter Rinku Singh was summoned to Dharamsala for a photoshoot for the World Cup. The batter has all the qualities to be part of the T20 squad in the USA and the West indies.
In 11 innings in India colours, Rinku has scored 356 runs at a strike rate of 176.23. All these knocks have come while batting at No. 5 or lower. That’s the kind of impact he has had as a finisher.
Young batter Sameer Rizvi of Meerut has a good chance to stake claim to a Team India berth. Rizvi’s ability to dominate spin resulted in a Rs 8.40 crore bid for him at the IPL auction. In a Syed Mushtaq Ali
T20 game on a slow pitch in Dehradun, Rizvi almost singlehandedly powered former champions Uttar Pradesh home with an unbeaten 75 off 46 balls against a strong Tamil Nadu spin attack comprising Varun Chakravarthy, R Sai Kishore and Washington Sundar.
Rizvi had first emerged on the scouts’ radar after hitting the most sixes for Kanpur Superstars in the maiden edition of the UP T20 League last year. In February this year, he cracked a triple-century for U.P. in the Under-23 CK Nayudu Trophy. With CSK missing Ambati Rayudu and Ajinkya Rahane struggling for form, Rizvi, dubbed the right-handed Suresh Raina, could make his IPL debut this season.
Besides Rizvi, young keeperbatter Dhruv Jurel could also be a surprise inclusion in Team India for the T20 World Cup, if Ajit Agarkar-led selection panel decide to make use of KL Rahul only as a batter at the mega event. In that case, Jurel, one of the major discoveries in the last three Tests against England, will be a strong contender for a place in the team alongside Jitesh Sharma.
Before coming into the Test fold, Jurel, a Rajasthan Royals regular, was considered a T20 specialist. He has a strike rate of 137.07 in this format in 23 games. His seamless transition to Test cricket and especially his ability to handle pressure has been noticed.
Even though Jurel will barely keep wickets in the IPL in presence of the Royals’ first choice wicketkeeper and captain Sanju Samson, the Agra cricketer has given enough proof of his ability in three Tests with the way he kept against India’s world-class spinners on turning pitches with low and sometimes variable bounce.
“A good showing with the willow in the IPL will help Jurel present his case strongly. He is a fantastic and courageous player capable of handling all kinds of pressure,” former India cricketer and junior national selector Gyanendra
Pandey said.
“IPL always plays an important role in getting cricketers selected for the Team India for future series. I would like to see many more UP cricketers to showcase their abilities at the upcoming IPL season,” added Pandey, former captain and coach of the UP Ranji Trophy team.
UP PLAYERS IN IPL 2024 Chennai Super Kings: Sameer Rizvi (batter)
Delhi Capitals: Swastik Chikara (batter), Kuldeep Yadav (spinner)
Gujarat Titans: Kartik Tyagi (pacer)
Kolkata Knight Riders: Rinku Singh (batter)
Lucknow Super Giants: Shivam Mavi (pacer)
Mumbai Indians: Piyush Chawla (spinner)
Rajasthan Royals: Dhruv Jurel (keeper/batter)
Royal Challengers Bangalore: Yash Dayal (pacer)
Sunrisers Hyderabad: Upendra Yadav (keeper/batter), Bhuvneshwar Kumar (pacer)