IPL 2018: 5 Debutants who impressed the most

The eleventh edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) recently came to a close and the tournament turned out to be a massive success. The event had a blend of veterans and youngsters who put their hands up and delivered the goods for their respective franchises. While some performances were expected, many of them left us awestruck with their exemplary shows on the field. The IPL is a massive platform to bring upcoming talents into the limelight. The pressure is immense and several newbies have crumbled to handle the intensity of the mega event. Nevertheless, there have also been players who have impressed in their maiden foray in the cash-rich league. In our article, we take a look at five new players who stood out in this year’s IPL. #1 Jofra Archer Rajasthan Royals’ Jofra Archer in action. (Photo by Surjeet Yadav/IANS) Jofra Archer was bagged for INR 7.20 crores by the Rajasthan Royals (RR) in the auction and was one of the hottest buys amongst the debutants. He came into the tournament with a status of being a lethal bowler and he made his reputation no harm as the tournament progressed. He didn’t play the first five matches owing to the side strain he walked into the tournament with. The 23-year-old represented the Royals for the first time versus the Mumbai Indians (MI) and immediately made an impact with a three-wicket haul. He bowled with pace and clocked above 145 kmph, consistently enough to ruffle the feathers of the batsmen. The Barbados-born player followed it up with another impressive spell against the Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH). In 10 matches, Archer managed to snare 15 wickets. #2 Mayank Markande Mayank Markande. (Photo Source: Twitter) Mayank Markande was roped in by the Mumbai Indians (MI) at his base price of INR 20 lakhs. MI is a star-studded side and breaking into the team was improbable for the Punjab leg-break bowler. However, the management entrusted him in the first match itself and he didn’t let the team. He picked up three wickets against CSK, which also included the prized scalp of MS Dhoni. The 20-year-old bowler snapped four wickets versus SRH in the next match and attracted praises from the cricketing fraternity, though the spells couldn’t take his team home. He couldn’t bowl as well in the matches thereafter, however, he is definitely good enough to be groomed into one of the leading spinners in India. In this season’s IPL, he notched 15 wickets in 14 contests. #3 Lungi Ngidi Chennai Super Kings’ Lungi Ngidi. (Photo by IANS) Lungi Ngidi lost his father earlier in April and had to return home to attend the cremation and other ceremonies. However, he returned and bowled exceedingly well for the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) who drafted him in at his base price of INR 50 lakhs. He is tall and lanky and hence, generating pace and bounce wasn’t an issue for the South African speedster. Lungi chipped in with decent spells in first three matches with a wicket each in every game. Nevertheless, his most significant performance came in CSK’s contest versus the Kings XI Punjab (KXIP) in Pune. He churned out four wickets for 10 runs and broke the backbone of Punjab’s batting. Even in the playoffs, the 22-year-old didn’t flatter to deceive. He ended with 11 wickets from seven matches. #4 Prithvi Shaw Prithvi Shaw plays a shot. (Photo Source: Twitter) Prithvi Shaw made his name in the Under-19 World Cup and attracted a bid of INR 1.20 crores by the Delhi Daredevils (DD) from a base price of 20 lakhs. He didn’t find a place in the first five matches owing to the presence of more established stars in the team. In Delhi’s encounter against Punjab, at the Feroz Shah Kotla, he made his first IPL appearance. He scored 22 runs and then backed it up with his maiden fifty in the tournament versus the Kolkata Knight Riders (RR). The teenager compiled his second half-century against SRH in Hyderabad. The Maharashtra-born cricketer played nine matches and scored 245 runs. Moreover, he utilised the field restrictions and never shied away from expressing himself with the willow. #5 Shubman Gill Shubman Gill celebrates his fifty. (Photo Source: Twitter)chercher Shubman Gill hogged the headlines with his century in the semi-final of the U19 World Cup versus Pakistan. He was picked for INR 1.80 crore by the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in the auction and deservingly so. After warming the bench for three games, he was included in the eleven. Surprisingly enough, he came to bat way down the order that didn’t give him ample opportunities to justify his potential. In one of the matches, Nitish Rana was ruled out because of a back strain and Gill was promoted to number four. The move turned out to be a masterstroke as he raced away to a knock of 57 runs, which helped KKR thump CSK. The 18-year-old notched a couple of useful knocks to ensure that he didn’t fall away. The Fazilka-born cricketer scored 203 runs in 13 matches at a strike-rate of 146.04. 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IPL 2018: 5 Debutants who impressed the most

A couple of teenagers also feature in the list.

#2 Mayank Markande

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