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The Indian Premier League mega auction is just around the corner. Over the years, the tournament has changed many lives for the good, given the perks it offers to cricketers at a young age apart from the opportunity for youngsters to rub shoulders with and against the best in the world. With the Under-19 Asia World Cup on and the Indian U-19 squad having reached the tournament after a win in the U-19 Asia Cup, this could have easily helped at least a few cricketers get noticed by the franchises in the competition.
Moreover, the IPL 2022 will be a ten-team affair which implies that there will be more requirements of players with more matches and more teams making it a blockbuster experience. And so the U-19 stars have even more chances of getting an IPL contract.
Here are five of these teenagers who can get picked in the IPL auctions:
1. Vicky Ostwal
One of the more consistent players in recent times has been the slow left-arm orthodox bowler Vicky Ostwal. The 19-year-old ended up as one of India's most successful bowlers at the Under 19 Asia Cup which the team won. In the tournament, he scalped 6 wickets in 4 matches at an average of 15.83 and an economy of 2.50. In addition, he was also impressive in the solitary match that has taken place in the T20 World Cup so far as he scalped a fifer in Indias' campaign opener against South Africa Under-19s. Vicky would definitely be on the radar of the teams.
2. Raj Bawa
Raj Bawa is another cricketer who has surely attracted the people who matter at the IPL 2022 Auctions through his consistent performances. The right-arm medium-fast bowler finished with the highest number of wickets in the Indian contingent in the U-19 Asia Cup with 8 wickets in 4 matches at an average of 21.37 and an economy of 5.18. Moreover, Bawa was superb in the campaign opening game for India at the U-19 World Cup where he registered figures of 4/47. Apart from his bowling, he has been splendid with the bat as well. The southpaw scored 91 runs in 3 innings at the Asia Cup and had the second-highest batting average by an Indian in this tournament.
3. Rajvardhan Hangargekar
All-rounders are so important to the balance of the side especially in a T20 format where cameos could be enough to help a team cross the finishing line. Rajvardhan Hangargekar definitely looks like an exciting prospect given his ability both with the ball and bat. Hangargekar not only played useful little cameos, overall striking at 181.48 but with the ball in hand scalped 5 wickets in 4 matches at an economy of 5.13 in the Under-19 Asia Cup. He even managed to pick up a wicket in the U-19 World Cup game against South Africa.
4. Shaik Rasheed
Among the batters, it is Shaik Rasheed who might have done just about enough to get him an IPL deal. The right-handed batter was the highest run-getter for the Indian team at the U-19 Asia Cup scoring 133 runs in 4 matches at an average of 66.50. Overall in 5 Youth ODIs, Rasheed has scored 164 runs at an average of 54.66 with a highest of an unbeaten 90.
5. Yash Dhull
At the biggest stage of age-group cricket, India U-19 skipper Yash Dhull scored a match-winning 82 that has helped the Indian contingent start off their World Cup campaign with a win. The innings was enough indication of the potential that Dhull has, the fruit of which can be borne by franchises who invest in him at this stage. After all, Royal Challengers Bangalore too trusted a young Virat Kohli and couldn't have asked for a better bet in the long run as a batter alone. Will Dhull too carry forward his form into the rest of the tournament and then get an IPL contract? We shall wait and see.