IPL- DOOR TO NATIONAL TEAM

Indian Premier League was started as an experiment, as a source of entertainment and money for many in 2008. But not many have thought that it can become the hub of new talent for Indian cricket. Over the 14 seasons of IPL, there have been a lot of players who have participated in this league. Many who were unknown to the world became superstars overnight.

IPL has been a platform where the talent meets the opportunity, players from small places get to play along with well-established international stars. Also, it has become the source of earning bread for their families which was earlier not possible that easily.

But apart from all of this name and fame, what could be the ultimate dream of a boy when he started playing cricket? The dream is to wear that blue jersey and represent his country at the highest level.

 And IPL has been a platform ever since its beginning. Over the years many players have donned the Indian Jersey by showcasing their talent in the IPL.  Jasprit Bumrah, Hardik Pandya, R. Ashwin, Rishabh Pant to name a few.

In the upcoming tour of Sri Lanka, some players are picked after having a tremendous outing in the IPL.

 

Chetan Sakariya

The story of Chetan’s life is not less than a film story. Born in a lower-middle-class family started playing cricket at a very young age but he never had proper resources for training. He only managed to get his first pair of spikes when a senior player promised to buy him if he manages to dismiss him.

After that, he got an opportunity to represent his state team in SMA Trophy where he was doing pretty well but then his younger brother committed suicide but his parents didn’t tell him, so he can focus on the game and after that IPL auction happened where he was bought by Rajasthan Royals for a whopping amount of Rs 1.2 crore and he performed according to his price tag.

But soon after another incident occurred, he lost his father due to covid. But all this did not stop Chetan to meet his dream and in the end, all his hard work paid off and he got his maiden call for the national team.

 Nitish Rana

A young lad from Delhi who has been part of the IPL set-up for a long time. Rana started his journey by playing for Mumbai Indians but later got his chances at Kolkata Knight Riders. He has been part of the KKR team since 2018 and from that time he has become an important part of the team. 

Over the years he played some outstanding knocks to seal the deal in his side’s favour. With being one of the highest run-getter in the league phase of 2019. In the end, his elegant batting did wonders for him by getting him a call for the national team.

 

Varun Chakravarthy

An Architect turned cricketer then getting a bid of record-breaking 8 crores in his first IPL season for the Punjab team.

Varun’s cricketing journey is a fairy-tale. In his first season, he only managed to get a single game but in his second season he turned up for the KKR franchise where he provided the team with some outstanding spells of spin bowling and a five-wicket haul to his name. And after this spectacular performance, it was a matter of time for him to get selected for the senior team.

Ishan Kishan

The former U-19 captain, who has grown up to become a strong batting pillar of the Mumbai Indians line-up is known for his flamboyant batting style has played many vital knocks for his side. And with his big-hitting ability, he has scored highly in the middle order. 

Due to his hard-hitting ability, he was earlier selected for the T-20 series against England where he scored 68 in his début innings and being a wicketkeeper, he provides stability to the team.

Devdutt Padikkal

A 20-year-old boy, who quickly rose through the age-group cricket to be a part of the senior group. He was born in Hyderabad, but to give a better cricketing opportunity his parents shifted to Karnataka and in a matter of years, he proved his parent’s decision right by being part of the Under 16 & 19 state team. 

And soon after he was bought by RCB in 2019 but he only got the chance to play in the 2020 season, where he scored 473 runs in 15 matches and won the Emerging Player Award. Continuing his last season form he hit a blistering century against the Rajasthan team in this year’s IPL.