Though late due to the pandemic caused by the COVID-19, this year’s IPL is around the corner. For the second time in the IPL history, the tournament will be conducted outside India in UAE.
The matches will take place in the three venues in UAE, which are Abu Dhabi, Dubai, and the famous Sharjah,
The tournament will start in Abu Dhabi’s Sheikh Zayed Stadium, which will host 20 games.
Dubai and Sharjah are allotted 24 and 12 games respectively.
Adding to the existing excitement of the festive season, which is just to begin, IPL is what we as cricket fans want.
Either watching the last ball finishes from Dhoni or Rohit’s ‘hitman’ like start, Bumrah’s deadly yorkers or Virat scoring like a run machine, the battle between the bat and ball what we all are waiting to watch.
Excluding the greats Virat Kohli, Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Rohit Sharma, David Warner, Shikhar Dhawan, Maxwell, AB de Villiers, Yuvraj Singh, and many more, here’s a list of Top 5 Batsmen to Watch out in IPL 2020, who can be match winners.
Andre Russell –
Even the teammates say Russell knocks the ball in the net sessions like he does during a match. The Indian chinaman – Kuldeep Yadav said recently that he fears of getting injured and does not like to bowl to Russell in nets. Kuldeep, an astonishing spinner India could have, fears the Jamaican in nets, leaves no space for opponents to plan for Andre Russell. He scored a whopping 510 runs at an average of 56.66 with a strike rate of 204.81! Explosive as it can get, Andre Russell surely can take sleep away from bowlers in the forthcoming IPL season.
Rishabh Pant – 
The Indian wicket-keeper batsman has already made his impression as the next ‘Gilchrist’, from the Aussie legend Ricky Ponting. Pant in the last season had a good run with the Delhi Capitals. He scored 488 runs in 16 matches, at an average of 37.53 with a strike rate of 162.66. Already tasted a century, it will be interesting to see if Rishabh Pant can get Delhi to the finals for the first time and win it for them.
KL Rahul – 
With his classy thrashing style, KL Rahul surely be the game making player for the Kings XI Punjab in IPL 2020. KL Rahul scored almost 600 runs (593) last season, at 53.90 average with a 138.15 strike rate. He has been a good run-scorer for the Indian team outside the subcontinent in all the formats. Also, his delicate work behind the stumps earns him some important points. With the ‘Universe Boss’, KL Rahul might cross the line for Kings XI Punjab and lead the team with his captaincy to an IPL victory this year.
Quinton de Kock – 
The main reason why Mumbai Indians was able to lift the trophy last year. Quinton de Kock scored 529 runs at 35.26 average with a 132.91 strike rate. He will be opening the batting with Rohit Sharma and has the ability to strike from the first ball. Quinton being the trump card for Mumbai Indians, with later hitters like Pollard and Pandya brothers, this year also can be Mumbai’s year.
Shreyas Iyer – 
He has the ‘Emerging Player’ award under his name and a decent score last season. With his captaincy, Delhi Capitals reached the semi-finals last year and it is highly expected that Shreyas Iyer will deliver with massive runs at a staggering strike rate whenever Delhi will need. Shreyas Iyer scored 463 runs at a 30.86 average with a 119.94 strike rate in 2019. He completes the list and could also complete Delhi’s hunt for an IPL trophy.
