IPL 2020: 5 Players to watch out for in the tournament

The much-awaited IPL 2020 is set to kick-start on 19th September in the United Arab Emirates, with the final to take place on 10th November, as decided by the IPL Governing Council. The 13th edition of the tournament was supposed to begin in March but was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and is now shifted to the UAE, where the first 20 games in IPL 2014 were hosted.

For years, the IPL has provided opportunities for players to showcase their skills on the biggest T20 stage in the world. This time it will be no different either. Apart from their favourite team and player, the followers of the game will have an eye on other teams and their players as well.

With two T20 World Cups scheduled in the next two years, there are plenty of players who will be looking to make a case for their selection in their national team. Even as uncapped players will have a chance to present themselves as future superstars, many others will hope to rejuvenate their careers. Some will also have a point to prove to their national selectors.

Here we look at 5 such players to watch out for in the IPL 2020:

1. MS Dhoni

It has been over a year, not just since India lost in the World Cup semi-final against New Zealand in Manchester, but also it was the last, and maybe – just maybe – the final time MS Dhoni donned the blue jersey for the national team. He has been on an indefinite break from professional cricket since.

With the postponement of the IPL, there were talks regarding Dhoni’s future in the Indian team. And why not; after all he has not played any international game for 13 months; his numbers in T20Is also don’t rationalise the tag of a finisher anymore.

His strike-rate of 116 in 2019 and 139 since 2015 for India in T20Is is not great by any stretch for any batsman who comes in the lower-middle order and in the death overs. Though he has been phenomenal for CSK in the last couple of IPL seasons, his place in the Indian team – at least in T20Is – is not secure anymore; nor should it be.

KL Rahul has established himself in the T20I team as the keeper-opener while Rishabh Pant and Sanju Samson are waiting for more opportunities, as the fans await for Dhoni to end his absence. Last year, the players had an extra motive in the IPL, so as to be in form for the World Cup; this year, for Dhoni, it is about proving to the world that the 39-year-old still got some fuel left in the tank. With the T20 World Cup postponed, it is absolutely necessary for the CSK skipper to demonstrate the form and fitness, in a bid to make a long-awaiting comeback in the national side.

2. Rishabh Pant

We move from Jharkhand to Uttarakhand, from the 39-year-old experienced legend to a 22-year-old talented youngster; from MS Dhoni to Rishabh Pant. Actually, the Indian team envisaged this transition when they gave a debut to Pant in 2017, when he was 19. However, this long-term plan looks off from its wheels in limited-overs cricket.

To put it in layman’s terms, Rishabh Pant – who has a Test century in England and Australia each – has been highly mismanaged in white-ball cricket. He has been touted as Dhoni’s heir, but he has also been in and out of the team. He was being put in at number four in a World Cup semi-final, uncertain of his role in the middle-order for some time. Back in January, he was finally forced out of the team by a concussion and has been omitted since then as the multi-specialist KL Rahul fulfilled the keeping duties.

The left-hander wasn’t selected for even a single game of the five-match series in New Zealand earlier this year; the same series in which Sanju Samson, who was Pant’s back-up, played a couple of games as a specialist batsman. KL Rahul, who came into the white-ball team as a batsman, is now a regular wicket-keeper, denting Pant’s chances of a comeback in the team.

There is no question over Pant’s potential as an explosive T20 batsman – an average of 36 with a strike-rare of 162 in IPL vindicates for the same – and his blooming Test record speaks for his quality. However, he hasn’t been able to cash in on the opportunities in the colored clothing for India. Although the left-hander has had fruitful outings in IPL every season, the upcoming season holds major significance, for Delhi Capitals and especially for Rishabh Pant.

3. Pat Cummins

Pat Cummins shattered records as he became the most expensive overseas player in the history of IPL when Kolkata Knight Riders – whom Cummins had represented in 2014 and 2015 – splurged out INR 15.5 Crores in the auction. Hence, whenever Cummins will run into bowl for KKR there will be an added pressure of the price tag, the expectations of the Kolkata fans, and the hopes of the Kolkata management to justify their spending on the pacer.

Cummins, who leads the ICC Test bowling ranking, will look forward to making a name for himself in the 20-over format as well. Cummins is often rested for T20 internationals by the Australian selectors, to be fit and fresh for Test matches, and therefore has played just 28 T20Is, despite having made his debut in 2011. In the view of the upcoming T20 World Cup – earlier to be scheduled for October this year, now postponed for next year – he was recalled to the national side.

He has fared decently for Australia in T20Is of late. Since 2019, the right-arm pacer has picked 13 wickets at an average of 18 in 10 matches. More importantly, he has given away runs at an economy of less than seven runs per over in these games- playing the supporting role to the likes of Mitchell Starc and Adam Zampa.

While Kolkata may have picked him, bearing in mind the fast and bouncy pitch at the Eden Gardens, the Aussie speedster is equally capable to match his consistency on the tracks in the UAE. The heavy price tag will draw a lot of attention on the seamer and he will be scrutinised with every delivery he bowls.

4. Yashasvi Jaiswal

Yashasvi Jaiswal was a much-talked-about player before the Under-19 World Cup in January this year. And he delivered on the promise- scoring 400 runs in 6 innings at a colossal average of 133, notching up one century and four half-centuries. In his short 13-match domestic List A career, the left-hander has scored 779 runs at an average of 70.81, including 3 hundreds. He also helps the team with his occasional leg-breaks.

From sleeping in tents at the ground, selling panipuris to being bought for INR 2.4 crore by Rajasthan Royals – Jaiswal’s story has been a classic tale of ‘rags to riches’, and an inspiration, on and off the field. The next year’s IPL auction being a mega-auction, the Royals have brought in the southpaw with an eye for the future.

Rajasthan have traded off Ajinkya Rahane to Delhi Capitals, and their regular opener Jos Buttler, along with three other overseas stalwarts Steve Smith, Ben Stokes, and Jofra Archer, could miss the initial few games of the tournament owing to their national duties. In that case, Jaiswal will have a golden opportunity to display his batting on the biggest T20 stage.

5. Devdutt Padikkal

Devdutt Padikkal, the name has been buzzing on the lips of RCB fans since last season, when the franchise bought him for his base price of 20 lakhs. And the hype has been ever-increasing with every stellar performance from the youngster. Born in the state of Kerala, the left-hander represents Karnataka in domestic competitions and made huge contributions to his team’s title-winning Vijay Hazare campaign.

Padikkal averages 59 in 13 List-A matches, including 2 hundreds and five fifties. In 12 domestic T20 games, the 20-year-old averages a massive 64 and strikes at 175. Last year, Padikkal couldn’t get any game for RCB due to a heavy batting order. However, on the back of a tremendous domestic season, he is expected to make his IPL debut this year.

Padikkal is a versatile batsman and apart from opening, he can bat in the middle-order as well. With the likes of Aaron Finch and Moeen Ali likely to miss the first few games – they might be playing against each other for their national sides – Padikkal could get an opportunity and he would want to grab it with both hands.