Karnataka Premier League 2019: 3 youngsters who could secure IPL contracts if they do well this season

Karnataka State Cricket Association is gearing up for the eighth season of the Karnataka Premier League (KPL), set to start in August this year. The tournament will be played for two weeks across Bengaluru, Hubli and Mysore, with the final scheduled on September 1.

KPL has served as a platform for talented cricketers such as Prasidh Krishna, KC Cariappa, Shivil Kaushik and K Gowtham, who have later gone on to play in the Indian Premier League. A few of them have also been a part of the India A squad in recent times.

Just like every other season, the upcoming edition also offers several budding cricketers with a chance to make a mark in front of a larger audience. Most of the IPL franchises and scouts follow the state-based tournaments in order to add depth to their squad and include surprise packages.

On that note, based on their performances in recent times, we look at three players who could receive an IPL call-up next season.

---

#3 V Koushik

Koushik is a reliable fast bowler

Karnataka has had a decent heritage of churning out fast bowlers for the Indian Cricket team.

While Javagal Srinath and Venkatesh Prasad dominated in the Indian Team for a while, their successors in Vinay Kumar, Abhimanyu Mithun, and Sreenath Aravind featured for the national side sporadically.

The new crop of young bowlers comprising of the likes of Prasidh Krishna and V Koushik are out to emulate what their immediate seniors achieved, and probably go on to cement their spot in the Indian team.

With 17 wickets in previous season's Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, Koushik was Karnataka's best bowler.

He accepted the responsibility of bowling at both ends of the innings and fulfilled it with ease. He has got quite a few variations up his sleeve, with the yorker being his trademark delivery. If he can keep the batsmen down in KPL 8 as well, an IPL offer could be on the way.

#2 BR Sharath

Sharath is a talented wicket-keeper-batsman

BR Sharath is a fiery yet versatile batsman; someone who can open the innings and also adapt his game in the middle-order.

He played a few aggressive knocks in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy and was also a regular member of Karnataka's Ranji team for the 2018/19 season. Most importantly, Sharath is a regular wicket-keeper and going by his performances behind the wickets so far, it is fair to claim that his skills are extremely impressive.

A domestic wicket-keeper has always been a valuable addition to an IPL franchise and thus, Sharath could be in demand should be rack up consistent performances with both bat and glove in the KPL this term.

---

#1 Rohan Kadam

Rohan will be keenly watched by many IPL franchises over the next few weeks

A consistent top-order batsman who has the ability to both anchor an innings and accelerate at will, Rohan Kadam will definitely be on by many IPL franchises' radar in the upcoming season.

With 536 runs in 12 matches in previous season's Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, Kadam was the highest run-getter in the tournament and also Karnataka's impact player.

He will be playing for the Bengaluru Blasters next season, and if the 25-year-old can continue his form, he has the chance of earning himself an elusive IPL contract in 2020.