3 reasons why Kyle Mayers can be the next West Indian superstar of IPL

IPL debutant Kyle Mayers top-scored for the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) with a sparkling knock of 73 from just 38 deliveries in his team's 50-run win over the Delhi Capitals.

Mayers started slowly, with just 17 runs off his first 17 deliveries, before changing gears and accelerating, scoring 56 off his next 21. The innings comprised seven massive sixes and two fours as the West Indian made the most of a reprieve early in his innings.

The Lucknow Super Giants bought Kyle Mayers for ₹50 lakhs as a potential backup opener to South Africa's Quinton de Kock and a possible backup all-rounder for Marcus Stoinis.

With De Kock missing the first couple of matches due to an international assignment against the Netherlands, the powerful left-hander made the most of his opportunity.

Kyle Mayers' 73 was the fourth-highest score by an IPL debutant and the highest since the first IPL.

Over the years, the IPL has seen many West Indian players like Chris Gayle, Kieron Pollard, Dwayne Bravo, Andre Russell, and Sunil Naraine produce match-winning performances.

While Mayers has a long way to go before reaching those heights, he has displayed great potential in his early career for the West Indies and other franchises.

Here, we look at three reasons why the powerful left-handed batsman could become another West Indian superstar in the IPL.

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#1 Kyle Mayers' abilities as an all-rounder

Kyle Mayers put on an all-round show to help the Barbados Royals reach the finals of CPL 2022

The most successful T20 teams have often possessed players with all-round abilities. While all-rounders of any ilk are worth their weight in gold, seam bowling all-rounders have often been high-impact players.

Seam bowling all-rounders like Hardik Pandya, Dwayne Bravo, and Andre Russell have been invaluable for their teams in the IPL. They have had the ability to win matches with the bat and bowl.

Kyle Mayers is similarly capable with his powerful batting and effective medium-pace bowling. In the recently concluded SA20, the all-rounder opened the batting and bowling for his franchise Durban Super Giants. He also played a similar role in last year's Caribbean Premier League (CPL) for the Barbados Royals.

In the CPL last year, he averaged an impressive 31 at a strike rate of 135 while also picking up eight wickets at an economy rate of 5.40 in 12 matches.

The 30-year-old all-rounder from Barbados is among the few cricketers with both a double century (scored on debut) and a five-wicket haul in Test cricket. He also has two ODI centuries to his name.

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#2 Kyle Mayers' versatility with the bat

Mayers in a powerful striker of the ball

In his brief career, Kyle Mayers has shown the ability to bat at different positions in the batting order in all forms of the game. IPL sides often benefit from overseas players who can be used at any batting position, considering the number of position-specific batters in the squad.

Mayers has batted all the way down the order, from the opening slot to as low as no. 7 in his T20 career, across 61 innings. In recent times, he has been used more as an opener in T20s to allow him time to get settled before unleashing his stroke-play. However, in Tests, the left-hander still plays in the middle order for the West Indies.

Mayers has batted over 10 times at the opening position, no. 3, and no. 7 slot in his T20 career, showcasing tremendous versatility.

While the Barbados batsman can play the role of a sheet anchor, he also packs a punch with his power hitting. The southpaw has already hit 113 sixes in as many matches of his career.

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#3 Kyle Mayers' ability to defend and attack spin

Kyle Mayers made a splendid 210* in a record chase in Bangladesh

Kyle Mayers announced himself to the world when he became only the sixth batsman in the history of Test cricket to score a double century on his debut.

Not only did he score a double ton on his debut, but he did so in a very challenging situation. It was in the fourth innings of a Test against Bangladesh in 2021. He came in at 59-3 in a run chase of 395 on a turning wicket in Chattogram and produced one of the most memorable knocks in the long history of the game.

The left-hander remained unbeaten on 210 as he helped West Indies chase the target with three wickets in hand on Day 5. Mayers showed excellent technique and footwork in handling spin as he batted 310 balls and seven hours in his match-winning knock.

The 30-year-old mixed attack with a sound defense against the effective spinners of the home team. Apart from keeping the good balls out, he hit seven sixes in his innings.

With the IPL taking place in India and most teams possessing a variety of spinners, Mayers' ability to rotate the strike and hit sixes off them will be handy. While he hasn't faced much spin in T20s lately, owing to him opening the batting, he boasts an impressive average of 46 against spinners in Tests.

In the match against the Delhi Capitals, Mayers showed his ability to attack spin by belting five of his seven sixes against Axar Patel and Kuldeep Yadav.