IPL 2017: Jaydev Unadkat, the Supergiant no one expected to rise

After one and a half month of action-packed cricket, IPL 2017 culminated with one of the most dramatic matches of the tournament. A last-ball finish, which saw Mumbai Indians lift the trophy for the third time in 10 years.

Rising Pune Supergiant, on the other hand, ended up being on the losing side. However, their transformation from being one of the worse teams in the previous year to making it to the final this year is a great achievement.

Though this was their last year in the IPL, they did not fail to impress. One of the most consistent performers for them was the outstanding left-arm fast bowler - Jaydev Unadkat.

A quick glance at numbers

Talking numbers, with 24 wickets in 12 matches, Jaydev Unadkat was the most effective bowler for his side. He bagged the second highest number of wickets after Bhuvneshwar Kumar, who had 26 wickets in 15 games to his name.

Moreover, the 25-year-old also bowled the most number of maiden overs this season – three. Not to mention, he also belongs to the elite list of bowlers who took a hat-trick, along with a five-wicket haul in the one and a half month long tournament.

The team wasn’t going through a great run initially, bowling being one of the areas of major concern. Subsequently, the team management took a chance and experimented with Unadkat. The bowler grabbed the opportunity with both hands.

Out of the 12 matches that Unadkat played for RPS, they managed to win nine of them. He has been instrumental in all the games, maintaining a healthy economy of 7.02 runs per over.

Speaking of his performance in some of the key matches, there are a couple of notable high points.

He made a mark in his first game itself, by picking up two wickets for 25 runs in his four overs against the Royal Challengers Bangalore. In the process contributing to the team’s victory after three straight losses.

With the departure of Ben Stokes, his role in the unit with the ball had become even more crucial in the playoffs

Then came the match against SRH, where his magical spell of 5 for 30, including a hat-trick, became one of the highlights of the tournament. Not only SRH or RCB, his deceptive slower balls and a controlled line and length held KKR from getting the momentum as well, against whom he picked up two wickets.

Moreover, with the departure of Ben Stokes, his role in the unit with the ball had become even more crucial in the playoffs. He did not disappoint and was one of the better bowlers, both in the qualifier 1 and final.

Bought only for 30 lakhs at the auction earlier in the year, no one would’ve thought that Unadkat will turn out to be this effective for his side. All of this and much more makes him one of the stand-out performers of IPL 2017.

His past few years in the IPL were not very encouraging. Bought for a whopping 2.8 crores by Delhi Daredevils in 2014, Unadkat failed to add great value to the franchise. There was nothing impressive about his nine wickets in nine matches. Later, he only managed to play two games, one game each year, in last two seasons of IPL.

The domestic T20s tournament, Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, too saw a very average performance from him. As a result, he did not walk into the tournament with a load of expectations and had to begin the season by warming the benches. However, he came out all guns blazing once given an opportunity and didn’t look back.

Tournaments	Matches	Wickets	Economy	Average
IPL 2017	12	24	7.02	13.41
Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2017	4	5	9.95	31.20
IPL 2014	9	9	8.66	30.00

Way Ahead

Though he has played for the national side before, Unadkat may not feature in the blue of India anytime soon. He does, however, belong to the pool of young fast bowlers that need to be nurtured for the future of Indian cricket.