In the first 30 games of IPL 2024, Indian players—who are uncapped and even unknown—had made a bigger impression than they have in previous years.
The world’s top T20 talent has the IPL as their primary destination. Countless numbers of people queue up to see Virat Kohli hit hundreds of runs, MS Dhoni close out games with sixes, and Jasprit Bumrah nail yorkers. In addition, a significant trend this season has been the rise of Indian players without caps. According to ESPNcricinfo’s Smart Stats, the average impact of uncapped Indian players in the first 30 games of the season is 22.19 points, a 30% increase over last season (17.16).
Two of the three players who have won Player-of-the-Match trophies more than once this season are Indians without caps. An uncapped Indian is the first player this season to take five wickets, and the only one who isn’t called Bumrah. Another uncapped Indian is vying with Kohli for the orange cap: keep in mind that Ruturaj Gaikwad is the only one who has never been captained and has only ever topped the IPL run lists once, in 2021.
While Punjab Kings (PBKS) have resorted to uncapped Indian batters for a lift-off, Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) and Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) have relied on uncapped Indian bowlers to do the work for them. For Indian players who are uncapped, the Impact Player rule has also increased opportunities. These six players have excelled in the 2024 Indian Premier League and have more to offer.
Mayank Yadav(Lucknow Super Giants)
In the IPL 2024, Mayank made a splash by becoming the first player in league history to win Player-of-the-Match in both of his opening two games. Among the 21-year-old’s victims were Rajat Patidar, who recently made his debut for India internationally, Jonny Bairstow, Glenn Maxwell, and Cameron Green.
The speed at which Mayank defeated Maxwell and Green at the Chinnaswamy Stadium sent shockwaves through the crowd. Mayank can consistently reach speeds of above 150 km/h, which even made Maxwell think of Shaun Tait during his heyday. Coach Tom Moody of Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) and a former Australia all-rounder, Mayank was so impressive that he felt the tearaway will be “in the conversation” for the 2019 T20 World Cup. However, for the time being, his buzz has been considerably muted due to an abdominal injury.
Shashank Singh (Punjab Kings)
Shashank was chosen by PBKS for his base price of INR 20 lakh during the previous auction, and they attempted to get rid of him before apologising on social media.
When Shashank played his second game for PBKS against Gujarat Titans, he took on the heavy lifting and finishing duties that Liam Livingstone would have taken on if he had been healthy. After the Kings were 111 for 5 in the 13th over, Shashank, 32, hit an unbeaten 61 off 29 balls to put a 200-run chase within sight. Shashank was being praised by those who had teased him during the auction and praised PBKS for choosing the correct man.
In his very next innings, Shashank again displayed his power striking against SRH, taking on players like Pat Cummins and Bhuvneshwar Kumar, but PBKS was nearly beaten in their pursuit. After years of suffering in domestic cricket, Shashank has at last made his IPL debut.
Ashutosh Sharma (Punjab Kings)
Before making his IPL debut this season, Ashutosh had only played 15 T20 matches. With Shashank, he has established a formidable tag combo. Thus far, they have managed to create stands of 43 off 22 and 66* off 27. Then, on an evening when no other PBKS player struck at more than 150, he had a stunning cameo against Rajasthan Royals (RR) even without Shashank at the other end, scoring 31 off 20 balls as an Impact Player.
After being cut from the Madhya Pradesh team in 2020, Ashutosh’s future seemed unclear, but he later found a new home at Railways and, more recently, PBKS in the IPL. “Whenever you get a chance [in the IPL], you will be a hero!” declared Ashutosh’s childhood coach, Amay Khurasiya, a former India batter who was extremely confident in his abilities.
If the Impact Player rule hadn’t been in place, Ashutosh might have had to wait longer to become a hero, but he’s making up for lost time.
Abhishek Sharma (Sunrisers Hyderabad)
This IPL, Abhishek (197.19) has a greater strike rate than Shivam Dube, Rishabh Pant, and Ishan Kishan. It could not be too long before he becomes a capped player if he keeps dominating attacks.
This season, his strike rate soars to 206.34 when he is in the powerplay. Throughout that time of play, Abhishek has only been surpassed by his opening partner Travis Head (207.14 in 2024) and Ajinkya Rahane (208.33 in 2023) in every season.
The encounter between Abhishek and the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in Hyderabad showcased his explosiveness and role clarity. Knowing that the pitch would slow down later in the evening, he focused on his objective and clobbered left-arm seamer Mukesh Choudhary for 27 runs in an over.
Additionally, he may be just as potent against spin if he manages to get past the powerplay. Abhishek opened the bowling against CSK and Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB), but his initial display with the bat has left opponents battered.
Riyan Parag (Rajasthan Royals)
RR had purchased Riyan Parag for INR 20 lakh during the IPL 2019 auction. They were so impressed with his potential that they went up to INR 3.8 crore to repurchase him during the 2022 auction. This season, Parag has finally matured after a difficult 2023.
With three fifty-plus scores in five innings to begin the season, all coming from No. 4, he has enabled RR to implement a versatile Impact Player plan. Their reliance on Rovman Powell has decreased thanks to Parag’s success, and they may now add someone like Nandre Burger as a sixth bowler.
This season, Parag has also developed his power game, blasting 18 sixes in 183 balls. He has demonstrated flashes of the big-hitting in seven consecutive Assam fifties for the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. He has credited his pre-season preparation, which included training at the Talegaon school of RR with one of their top instructors, Zubin Bharucha, for his performance in the IPL.
Harshit Rana (Kolkata Knight Riders)
In the three games that he has bowled in thus far, Harshit has left his mark. His two-wicket hauls against SRH and RCB to start the season were the highlight of his performance, which included stopping Klaasen in the penultimate over at Eden Gardens. Despite not bowling against the Delhi Capitals (DC) and missing the subsequent match against CSK due to injury, Rana made a fantastic return to the game.
Although his lack of wickets is noted on the scoreboard, his defensive abilities were crucial to KKR’s triumph over LSG. Rana stopped Nicholas Pooran on that particular day, limiting him to 16 off 11 balls with wide lines from over the wicket. Prior to this IPL, Pooran had been hitting sixes every seven balls. Among uncapped Indian seamers, his ability to smash the ball into the pitch instead of floating it on a length is highly unusual. He’s already been noticed by India A, and he can push for more recognition if he has a strong IPL season.