IPL 2018 Auction: 10 things to know about KKR's new recruit Kamlesh Nagarkoti

India's Uner-19 pace sensation Kamlesh Nagarkoti has been having a splendid time at the ongoing U-19 World Cup in New Zealand, impressing with his pace and accuracy with the ball as well as with his electric fielding as was evident in the quarter-final against Bangladesh, where he accounted for Aminul Islam's wicket with a direct hit.

Not that Nagarkoti was an unknown entity prior to the tournament, having impressed with the Under-19 side during their tour to England in 2017, but the performances in the U1-9 World Cup came at just the right moment for the 18-year-old with the IPL auctions around the corner.

“IPL khelna to ek dream hai,” (Playing the IPL is a dream) the youngster had told in an interview in August 2017 and on the big day today, the first day of the 2018 IPL auctions, his dream became a reality and how.

Kolkata Knight Riders and Kings XI Punjab went all out for the pace sensation, who only had a base price of Rs 20 lakhs, and it was the Kolkata-based franchise who finally secured the youngster's services for a whopping sum of Rs 3.2 crore.

Going by his performances recently and the abundance of potential in hand, it certainly seems a brilliant deal for both parties involved.

Here are 10 things to know about the 18-year-old pace sensation:

#1 Nagarkoti didn't take cricket seriously initially and used to play just for passing his time. His brother, however, spotted his talent and got him enrolled at the Sanskar Cricket Academy in Jaipur, which proved to be a game-changer in the youngster's life.

#2 Nagarkoti claims that the pace in his bowling came naturally to him and attributes the development in his game to Surendra Singh Rathore, his coach at the Sanskar Cricket Academy.

#3 Nagarkoti's impressive performances for the Rajasthan Under-16 and Under-19 side helped him make his List A debut for Rajasthan - a side that included the likes of Pankaj Singh and Nathu Singh - in 2017 at the age of just 17.

#4 Nagarkoti made an immediate impact in just his second game, becoming the first bowler from Rajasthan to pick up a hat-trick in List A cricket, helping his side defeat Gujarat in the Vijay Hazare trophy, who were cruising at 152/5 chasing 184 when Nagarkoti struck first.

#5 Nagarkoti finished the tournament (Vijay Hazare Trophy) as his team’s leading wicket-taker with nine wickets from five games at 17.55.

#6 Nagarkoti was the leading wicket-taker for the India Under-19 side in the two-match Youth Test series away to England, picking up 14 wickets at an average of 15.14 and an impressive strike rate of 26.7.

#7 The Rajasthan cricketer is also adept with the bat as well, scoring 116 runs from 6 List A matches at an average of 38.66, including an unbeaten knock of 56 against Gujarat.

#8 The 18-year-old singles out the out-swinger as his greatest strength and is working on swinging the bowl with pace to become more potent.

#9 Nagarkoti's all-time favourite player is fast bowling legend Waqar Younis while his favourites amongst the current crop of Indian players are Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Mohammad Shami and Rohit Sharma.

#10 Nagarkoti is also a keen football enthusiast with Real Madrid and Portugal international Cristiano Ronaldo being his favourite.