IPL 2020: 5 uncapped Indian players who punched above their weight

The Indian Premier League (IPL) has to be the best thing that could have happened to young and upcoming cricketers in the country. It has given them a platform to rub shoulders with the best cricketers in the world at a very early stage in their careers.

If you go back 15 years or so, the dream of facing the likes of Jasprit Bumrah or Jofra Archer, or bowling to Virat Kohli or Rohit Sharma, would have been possible only if you had got an India cap. But, thanks to the IPL, the young crop of cricketers are living the dream.

IPL 2020 has followed the trend of producing some young and exciting talent in the country. We will look at the five best uncapped Indian players who punched above their weight for their respective teams.

#5. Rahul Tewatia (Rajasthan Royals)

Rahul Tewatia was pretty in pink. Pic Courtesy: IPLT20.com

IPL franchises are happy if their senior players win two or three games on their own. Tewatia is an uncapped player who won Rajasthan Royals two matches pretty much on his own with the bat, from a seemingly lost situation.

Rahul Tewatia’s 53 against Kings XI Punjab has to be the best moment of this year’s IPL. The left-hander was struggling to put bat on ball and had scored only 8 runs off the first 19 balls he faced. At that stage, it looked like he was losing the game for his side.

But what followed in the next few overs was incredible. Tewatia took on the West Indian fast bowler Sheldon Cottrell to the cleaners by smashing five sixes in that over to win the game for Royals. There was even a cliche among fans and experts, “Turn it around like Tewatia.”

He followed it up with another match-winning knock (45 not out) against Sunrisers Hyderabad, as if to suggest that the earlier knock was not a fluke. The best part of this knock was how he took on one of the greatest T20 bowlers, Rashid Khan, when most other batsmen struggled throughout the tournament.

The interesting thing to note is Rahul Tewatia was considered a leg spinner who can bat in the lower middle order. Royals would hope that Tewatia would carry on his form in IPL 2021, which is only a few months away.

#4. Devdutt Padikkal (Royal Challengers Bangalore)

Devdutt Padikkal had a great debut season to remember. Pic Courtesy: IPLT20.com

If an uncapped young Indian player does not get dropped for a single match in the entire tournament, it means he has performed well for this side. Devdutt Padikkal was one of the success stories for RCB as they finished fourth in the league.

Over the years, one of the areas of concern for Kohli’s side was a quality Indian batsman at the top of the order. The left-handed Devdutt Padikkal filled the opening role to perfection and thereby reducing the over-dependence on Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers.

The tall batsman looked like he had plenty of time to play the shots, which is a good sign of quality batsmanship at this level. At times, when playing the one-legged pull or the cover drive, Padikkal looked like a young Yuvraj Singh in full flow.

The 20-year old RCB opener finished the tournament with 473 runs, a record for an uncapped player in their maiden season.

#3. Ruturaj Gaikwad (Chennai Super Kings)

Ruturaj Gaikwad turned around his fortunes very well. Pic Courtesy: IPLT20.com

In an otherwise disappointing season for Chennai Super Kings, perhaps the only positive that emerged during the last few weeks of the league was young batsman Ruturaj Gaikwad.

The right-hander looked out of sorts in the middle order earlier in the tournament. Once he started to open the innings, which is his usual position in the domestic circuit, Gaikwad grabbed the opportunity with both hands.

Ruturaj Gaikwad finished the IPL with a record-breaking feat, scoring three consecutive fifties for the men in yellow. Dhoni’s side went on to win all three matches and finished the season on a high.

In a side that consisted of mostly veterans, Gaikwad’s promise would have been enough for CSK to build a side around this talented youngster.

#2. T. Natrajan (Sunrisers Hyderabad)

Natrajan was the king of yorkers. Pic Courtesy: IPLT20.com

Even though T Natrajan has been with Sunrisers Hyderabad since the 2018 season, he wasn’t a regular in the playing XI until this year. He was a revelation right through the tournament and became the go-to man for skipper David Warner.

Natrajan was initially bought by Kings XI Punjab ahead of the 2017 season after the exceptional performance in the TNPL. His strength was always to bowl good yorkers at a decent pace. His debut season didn’t go according to plan as he played in 6 matches and picked up only two wickets.

The left-arm fast bowler has finally lived up to his potential in this year’s IPL. He has been exceptional at the death with those accurate yorkers right under the bat.

Natrajan has bowled the most number of yorkers than anybody else in the tournament, which is a terrific achievement, especially when there are some great bowlers in the league.

In the eliminator against RCB, Natrajan got the better of one of the most dangerous batsmen in AB de Villiers in the death overs, which suggested that he is on course to achieve bigger things in the future.

#1. Ishan Kishan (Mumbai Indians)

Ishan Kishan is already knocking the Indian team's doors. Pic Courtesy IPLT20.com

The left-handed wicket-keeper batsman is known to play few cameos in a season but has become a complete batsman in this year's IPL. Ishan Kishan has gone on from strength to strength and has now become a permanent No. 4 for the 4-time champions.

Batting at middle order in the T20 format is one of the toughest tasks in cricket, because you need to adapt to situations pretty quickly and cannot have a set game plan. Ishan Kishan has taken that role slot like a fish to water.

In a team that has no shortage of power hitting, Ishan Kishan has risen like a phoenix in that facet of the game as well. He has scored 29 sixes so far, which is the most by any player in this edition.

The wicket-keeper batsman slot in the Indian team is not yet taken up permanently since the retirement of MS Dhoni. There have been quite a few contenders eyeing that spot, but it looks like Ishan Kishan might pip them all in that race.