Every Indian Premier League has a breakout star or few and the 2024 edition of the tournament was no exception. How about entering the most lucrative T20 league of them all and leaving a mark? (More Cricket News)
But, what is talent without a platform? And that’s just what the IPL provides with the motto, “where talent meets opportunity”, and the platform has been backed up with performances for 17 years.
Jake Fraser-McGurk
Jake Fraser-McGurk only flew to the IPL as a replacement for Lungi Ngidi but might have made such an impact that has secured him an IPL future with a potential retention. Fraser-McGurk played just nine games and ended up as Delhi Capitals’ third-leading run scorer in the tournament. He also smashed four fifties, with two of them coming in record time (15 balls). With a powerplay strike rate of 250.94 and tournament strike rate of 234.04, the man from Melbourne is one to watch out for.
Mayank Yadav
Mayank Yadav bowling absolute rockets and enjoying every bit, soaking in the moment after two tough seasons was a thing of beauty. He managed to play just four games in IPL 2024 but made sure he left a mark that the world has its eye on for a while. The speed gun read over 150 clicks, and the wicket column was a pretty reading too. In four games, the speedster picked up seven wickets at an economy of 6.98 and also won two Player of the Match awards, and also took home a BCCI fast bowling contract.
Shashank Singh
“Remember, Red, hope is a good thing, maybe the best of things, and no good thing ever dies. I will be hoping that this letter finds you, and finds you well,” said Andy Dufresne in the Shawshank Redemption. This time around, there was a Shashank Redemption in the IPL. After showing glimpses of his talent in the 2022 season with SRH, and leaving Punjab Kings bewildered in the 2024 auction, he was among the few rays of sunlight for the Kings in a cloudy season. The batting all-rounder scored 354 runs in 14 games at a strike rate of 164.65 with two fifties and also played a pivotal role scoring 68*(28) in chasing down the highest ever 262-run target against KKR
Harshit Rana
19 wickets in 14 games - the numbers alone just don’t justify the impact. Harsht Rana, consistently bowling in pressure situations delivered for the eventual champions Kolkata Knight Riders. The versatility of a bowler gets tested with his ability to bowl with the new ball, in the middle overs and also at the death, and Rana ticked all the boxes to his and KKR’s benefit. At just 22, Rana finished the season as KKR’s joint-second highest wicket taker, the joint-fourth overall in the league and also has started to make noises to take the next step in his career and the upcoming domestic season could be the potential life-changing season with all eyes around him.
Abhishek Sharma
If Travis Head does not get you on the day, Abhishek Sharma does. Despite Sunrisers’ brothers of destruction failing to come good on the night of the IPL final, they have had a season to remember. Abhishek Sharma made 426 runs in the 2022 season and the 2024 one saw him push it to the next level with 484 with seven fifties and a strike rate of 155.24. The left-handed opener turned himself into a six-hitting machine with 42 to his name, the most by an Indian batter in the history of the IPL. Taking batting to another stratosphere, the Punjab batter could be in line for the Indian side in the upcoming future.
