IPL 2020: 5 young Indian faces who could impress in the upcoming IPL  

The IPL 2020 begins from September 19 in UAE.

The IPL 2020 is slated to happen in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and will begin from September 19 onwards and all the franchises, except the Chennai Super Kings, have started their outdoor practice sessions.

The franchises had gone in the auction that happened in December last year with a clean plan and invested well in some new faces during the process. The young Indian players from the U19 team and domestic performers were in limelight and franchises picked quite a few players who will become their core members in time to come.

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Many new faces are slated to make their IPL debut in the 13^th edition of the tournament and Team COC has chosen five of them, who have the most potential to impress with their skills in the tournament.

Here are the 5 young Indian faces who could impress in upcoming IPL  

ABDUL SAMAD (SRH)

One of the youngest players in the IPL 2020, Jammu and Kashmir’s Abdul Samad has played two seasons of domestic cricket for the team and has impressed a lot. The 18-year-old from Rajouri is known for his hitting prowess despite having a good technique. He is the fourth J&K cricketer after Parvez Rasool, Manzoor Dar, and Rasikh Salam to make into the IPL.

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Spotted first by J&K’s player-cum-mentor, former India all-rounder Irfan Pathan, Samad made his debut against Nagaland during Syed Mushtaq Ali 2018-19 season and smacked an unbeaten 76 of 51 balls, helping his team win the match. “He can bat anywhere and can hit sixes at will. He is a good wrist spinner too. He has got a sharp googly and bowls very accurately for a part-timer,” said Pathan to Times of India.

As for his record, Samad has played 10 FC games, making 592 runs with 2 centuries and 3 fifties with a best score of 128. In T20s, he has 240 runs from 11 matches with a best of 76* at a strike rate of 136.36. Samad will bring value in the SRH middle order, who require a hitter to complement the likes of Manish Pandey.

RUTURAJ GAIKWAD (CSK)

Maharashtra’s Ruturaj Gaikwad will have a big chance in the upcoming IPL 2020, as CSK’s best batsman in top order, Suresh Raina has returned home due to personal reasons. This opens a big opportunity for the youngster to impress everyone.

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He has played for Maharashtra for the last four years making 1349 runs in 21 FC matches with 4 centuries, 2499 runs in 54 List-A matches with 6 centuries, and the best score of 187*. In 28 T20 matches, Gaikwad made 843 runs with 6 fifties at a strike rate of 135.31.

The right-handed batsman is one of the most consistent performers in the domestic circuit and has been a part of India A teams in the recent past and this might be the golden opportunity he needs to push his case better.

KAMLESH NAGARKOTI (KKR)

India’s 2018 U19 World Cup winner Kamlesh Nagarkoti was the toast of the nation after he secured a Rs 3.2 crore deal with Kolkata Knight Riders for the IPL 2018 season. He, along with Shivam Mavi, was the main reason for India’s triumphant journey, as Nagarkoti picked 9 wickets in 6 matches.

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Unfortunately, Nagarkoti suffered a stress fracture in his back and missed out on both IPL 2018 and 2019 seasons. However, the KKR team management kept their faith in the Uttar Pradesh bowler by retaining him for consecutive seasons and now he has attained full fitness and raring to go and repay the trust shown by his franchise.

He got help from KKR mentor Abhishek Nayar in Mumbai and regained his pace as well and all eyes will be on Nagarkoti, who will be looking forward to playing with the likes of Pat Cummins, Lockie Ferguson, and other bowlers in the franchise.

DEVDUTT PADIKKAL (RCB)

Karnataka’s young opener Devdutt Padikkal has been making the right kind of noises ever since he was bought by the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in the IPL 2019 auction. Though he is yet to play a game for the franchise, the southpaw has made enough runs in impressive fashion to make the RCB management take notice of his talent.

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In his first full-fledged domestic season, Devdutt Padikkal was Karnataka's top run-getter (1838 runs) across all formats. He also hit the most sixes-33 in the 2019-20 Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. He averages 59.09 in List-A games with 650 runs in 13 matches with two centuries, while in 12 T20 matches, he has 580 runs at an average of 64.44 with one century and five fifties to his name.

With the possibility of AB de Villiers keeping wickets, RCB will have an open spot at the opening slot and Padikkal has definitely thrown his name in the hat for that position in the upcoming IPL 2020.

YASHASWI JAISWAL (RR)

Yashasvi Jaiswal had a tough journey in his resolve to become a cricketer. He sold panipuris and lived with groundsmen in the Muslim United Club’s tent at the Azad Maidan ground in Mumbai. His talent as top-order left-handed batsmen opened avenues for him and slowly his batting impressed the people who mattered.

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Rajasthan Royals paid heed to his talent and signed him for ₹2.4 crores for the IPL 2020. He scored 400 runs in 6 matches in the tournament including one century and 4 fifties to his name. He is also a handy leg-spinner and showed his bowling talents in the Mumbai T20 league.

He is the youngest batsman to score a double-century in List-A matches when he slammed 203 runs off 154 balls in a Vijay Hazare Trophy match against Jharkhand at the age of 17 years, 292 days in 2019.

RR has a very good player in their squad in Jaiswal, who will be eager to impress one and all with his bat and open a door for entry into the Indian team.