IPL 2018: 5 most unlikely openers seen in the IPL

#4 Rahul Tripathi

Rahul Tripathi will play for the Rajasthan Royals this season

The Ranchi-born Maharashtra batsman was known as a steady, technically sound middle-order batsman, and had not even appeared in the inter-state T20 games, when Rising Pune Supergiants picked him up for a bargain.

However, that was not the only break that Rahul Tripathi got. However, when the IPL came along in 2017, he was surprisingly asked to open the batting.

At the time, the regular cricket watcher must not have even heard of him, and many might have thought that it was another hair-brained move by a franchise that had fared poorly the previous year.

However, Tripathi’s promotion proved to be a masterstroke, as he became one of the most consistent players in the IPL last season and helped the team reach the final. In the 2018 auction, he was picked up by Rajasthan Royals for Rs.3.4 crores (Pune had paid Rs.10 lakhs for him).