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One good IPL season could make a cricketer's career, launching them from total obscurity to superstardom.
The Indian Premier League has always been a fantastic way of uncovering hidden gems - young cricketers that are unheard of suddenly become household names and fan favourites.
And it has happened time and again. Every single season of the IPL in its ten-year history has produced uncapped breakout Indian stars. Some have gone on to play for India and become global cricketing superstars, while others have shone brightly for one season and have disappeared back into obscurity.
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With the 2018 edition of the IPL now in full swing, let us look at 5 uncapped rookies who've been making waves in the tournament so far.
#5 Nitish Rana
Having been picked up by the Mumbai Indians three years ago in 2015, the batsman from Delhi was unknown till last year's IPL when MI found him fit to bat at the top of the order.
Rana took his chance in IPL 2017 amassing 333 runs in the 12 innings he played last season with an average of just over 30 runs per game.
Given his performance last season, the Kolkata Knight Riders had their sights set on the youngster for this season. Starting from his base price of Rs. 20 Lakhs, KKR fought off stiff competition from Rana's former team Mumbai Indians, settling the final auction price at a whopping 3.4 Crore.
And sure enough, Nitish Rana has repaid KKR's faith in him.
Whenever he's had a chance to bat, Rana has made sure to contribute to the team's total, scoring 219 runs in his 9 outings so far with an impressive strike rate of 130 and at an average of 31.28.
If his batting prowess wasn't enough for you to consider adding him into your fantasy league team, Rana has now started bowling as well.
When called upon to bowl this season, he's been effective having picked up 4 wickets so far with an economy of 7.54 whilst breaking big crucial partnerships.
#4 Prithvi Shaw
After Delhi Daredevils' captain Gautam Gambhir gave up the captaincy mid way through this season and was subsequently dropped from the squad due to a horrible run of form, the new DD skipper Shreyas Iyer has turned to young Prithvi Shaw to take Gambhir's place.
Having led the India U19 team to the World Cup win this year, Shaw has been the answer to Delhi's prayers.
His Sehwag-esque explosive batting style has given Delhi Daredevils just what they've been lacking - monster hitting in the powerplay overs. And it's been coming from an uncapped 18-year-old.
In the 5 matches, he has played this season, Shaw has already scored 205 runs averaging 41 runs a game with a stunning strike rate of 170.
When Delhi Daredevils are playing, Shaw is the best free substitution you can get.
#3 Mayank Markande
Before Mumbai Indians played Chennai Super Kings earlier this season, nobody had heard of him. In that game, he made his debut, picking up crucial wickets of Ambati Rayadu and MS Dhoni on his way to finishing with the incredible debut figures of 3/23. Now, everybody knows Mayank Markande.
Markande has been amongst the finds of the season. Having been bought for his base price of Rs. 20 Lakhs by Mumbai Indians after being discovered playing U23 cricket for his home state of Punjab, his debut performance has assured him a spot in the starting XI this season.
Following on from that, Markande has become a bowler Rohit Sharma has consistently relied upon.
13 wickets for the season so far with an economy under 8 has propelled the rookie onto fifth on the purple cap standings as it stands.
#2 Siddarth Kaul
You may not know this, but Siddarth Kaul was part of Virat Kohli's team that won the under 19 World Cup way back in 2008. Following the World Cup win, Kaul was drafted into the IPL in its inaugural season as well.
Although he's been in and out of teams since then, last year was when he was taken seriously. In IPL 2017, Kaul bowled out of his skin for Sunrisers Hyderabad picking up 16 wickets in the 10 matches that he played.
For 2018, however, he's just gotten better.
Kaul has been consistently delivering for SRH, constantly picking up crucial wickets, and bowling incredibly at the death partnering Bhuvanehwar Kumar. In the process, Kaul has scalped 13 wickets so far with an economy of 7.05, putting him third on the purple cap leaderboard.
An Indian team call-up could be around the corner for the headband assassin if he keeps bowling like this.
#1 Krunal Pandya
I'm sorry, but can someone tell me how Krunal Pandya is still uncapped?
Having made his debut for the Mumbai Indians in 2016, Krunal, along with his brother Hardik, has quickly established himself as one of the first names on the MI teamsheet.
With his leg spin, he quickly gets through his 4 overs maintaining a solid economy and constantly rattling partnerships. With the bat, he's always good for a quickfire 30 or 40 to finish the game or even anchor the batting and rotate the strike.
In IPL 2018, he's doing it again. Having contributed 9 wickets with an economy of 7.44 with the ball, and 181 runs with a strike rate of 148 so far this season, Krunal Pandya has proved himself to be an asset for Mumbai Indians yet again.
Please do yourself a favour and get Krunal Pandya as a free fantasy league substitution before gets his India cap.
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