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Even as the coronavirus threat continues to hang over the 2020 edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL), the teams are continuing with their preparations as the scheduled date of March 29 nears.
Rajasthan Royals, who won the inaugural edition of the IPL under the guidance of Shane Warne, will be keen to leave an imprint on the tournament. Following their surprise win in 2008, they have had rather underwhelming IPL campaigns.
In fact, the Royals failed to make it past the first round from 2009 to 2012. It was in 2013 that they finally made it to the play-offs. Since then, they have gone past the league stage on a couple of more occasions, but have failed to make it to the final.
Also see – Indian Premier League 2020 schedule
RR have been dealt with a big blow ahead of the tournament as their key pacer Jofra Archer is unlikely to feature in this year’s IPL due to injury issues. On that note, we take a look at three youngsters whom RR will hope can step up for the side.
#1 Yashasvi Jaiswal
The youngster, who was born in a humble family in Uttar Pradesh, has made a name for himself after facing numerous hardships in Mumbai. Yashasvi Jaiswal would be keen to leave his imprint on the Indian Premier League after being picked up by RR for ₹2.4 crores, prior to the Under-19 World Cup. The left-hander went on to shine in the tournament, ending the World Cup in South Africa as the leading run-scorer.
Jaiswal slammed 400 runs in six matches at an excellent average of 133.33 and a strike rate of 82.47. After a handsome hundred in the semi-finals against Pakistan, he stood out in the final with 88 as India went down to Bangladesh. The left-hander’s big-hitting abilities came to the fore when he became the youngest batsman to score a List A double-century while representing Mumbai against Jharkhand in the Vijay Hazare Trophy last year.
#2 Kartik Tyagi
Fast bowler Kartik Tyagi was one of the standout performers for India in the Under-19 World Cup. In six games, he claimed 11 wickets at an average of 13.90 and a strike rate of 24.1. He blew away Australia with figures of 4 for 24 to lead India to the semi-finals of the competititon.
Tyagi made his Ranji Trophy debut for Uttar Pradesh in 2017 at the age of 17 after impressing in the Under-19 Cooch Behar Trophy, where he played an important role in UP's victory against defending champions Vidarbha. In the youth ODI series in England last year, he picked up nine wickets in five games. In his short career, he has proven to be a genuine wicket-taker. It remains to be seen whether he can replicate the same for Rajasthan Royals, who purchased him for ₹1.3 crores at the auction.
#3 Oshane Thomas
Young West Indies pacer Oshane Thomas was in the news last month when escaped serious injury after being involved in a motor vehicle accident in Jamaica. Having made a quick recovery from the same, he was named in the squad for the T20I series in Sri Lanka. It did not take long for Thomas to show that the accident hadn't affected him as he ran through the Sri Lankan batting line-up with figures of 5 for 28 in the first T20I at Pallekele.
Thomas is an attacking bowler who constantly looks for wickets, as evident from his T20 record - 52 scalps in 36 games at a strike rate of 14.7. In Archer’s absence, Rajasthan Royals would expect him to play a bigger role in the upcoming campaign.
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