The Indian Premier League 2022 managed to put the focus back on cricket, even though TV viewership fell, and the entire league phase was played in only two cities and four stadiums. More importantly, it once again became a platform for the young and old, who were picked at low price value at the auctions to display their talent in the richest cricket league in the world and force the world to take notice.
Thus, in a way, it was a year when small budget players proved to be effective, performing over and above their price value.
Tilak Varma – Mumbai Indians – Price: Rs 1.7 crore
Varma was picked by Mumbai for a price of Rs 1.7 crore and a few pundits thought that the Mumbai team paid too much for someone who might not even make it to the playing eleven on first choice basis.
Since Suryakumar Yadav was injured, Varma got the chance in the very first game itself. He scored only 22 in that game, but those 22 were so pleasing to the eye that half the pundits were forced to change their statement and called Varma a cheap bargain by Mumbai for the kind of talent he possessed.
In total, the left-handed player went on to score 397 runs at an average of 36.09 and a strike rate of 131.02, which actually came down in later games when he was not at his best. For the most part of the tournament, Varma was the leading light in the batting department for the Mumbai Indians, a team which was struggling throughout the tournament.
It was only later that Ishan Kishan scored a big 81 not out to become the leading run-scorer for the Mumbai side and overtake Varma by 18 runs. Rohit Sharma, the Mumbai captain went as far as to say that Varma was a future all-format player for India because of the patience that he has shown and the kind of talent that he has in store.
“Having such a calm head is never easy and, in my opinion, he’s going to be an all-format player for India pretty soon. He’s got the technique, he’s got the temperament, which is the most important thing when you play at the highest level,” Rohit said in a chat with Star Sports.
Rajat Patidar – Royal Challengers Bangalore – Price: Rs 20 lakh
The first uncapped Indian to score a century in the IPL playoffs – that’s how Rajat Patidar is introduced now. This Madhya Pradesh born batsman of the Royal Challengers Bangalore was not even part of the RCB Squad initially and came in only as a replacement for Luvnith Sisodia, a wicket-keeper batsman from Karnataka who was injured in the camp and had to be ruled out.
Patidar played only 8 matches and in the seven innings that he batted, the 28-year-old, who was about to get married before his IPL 2022 call up, scored a whopping 333 runs at a stunning average of 55.20 and strike rate of 152. It was his knock of 112* at a strike rate of more than 200 that took RCB to the second qualifier.
Rinku Singh – Kolkata Knight Riders – Price: Rs 80 lakh
If other stories are an amalgamation of hard work, commitment and some luck, Rinku Singh’s story is just about hard work paying off finally. Coming from a family that lived hand-to-mouth in Aligarh in Uttar Pradesh, Rinku was not destiny’s favourite child.
Neither blessed with great footwork nor with any cricketing godfathers, this self-made, happy go lucky player found himself on the right side of things after having spent the last three seasons as the 12th man for Kolkata Knight Riders.
The 24-year-old, who was bought for Rs 80 lakh this season with a four-time increase in his wages of Rs 20 lakh from the last season, led the team to a win against Rajasthan Royals with his brilliant 42 not out and bagged his first Player of the Match award in the cash-rich league as well. In total, the Uttar Pradesh batter scored 174 runs at an average of 34 and a strike rate of 148.
He almost pulled off a miraculous victory for KKR with his 40 off just 15 balls in their last league game against Lucknow Super Giants, before Evin Lewis caught him brilliantly with just one hand at deep cover-point. The catch would later go on to be adjudged as the best catch of IPL 2022.
Jitesh Sharma – Punjab Kings – Price: Rs 20 lakh
Last, but not at all the least in the list is another player from Maharashtra, Jitesh Sharma. Known for his big hits in the domestic circuit, Jitesh was given a chance by the Punjab Kings unit after Shahrukh Khan, who was paid a whopping Rs 9 Crore in the auction this year, failed to perform in the first few games.
Though the initial inclusion of 29-year-old Jitesh into the Playing 11 was in place of Prabhsimaran Singh as the wicket-keeper batter, he later replaced Shahrukh even as Jonny Bairstow, the original wicket-keeper batter came in. Jonny was asked to field in the outfield while Jitesh kept wickets.
With handy cameos in early games, the right-hander managed to keep his place in the team, but it was his knock in Punjab’s game against Delhi where it seemed like he would win it from nowhere with his 44.
He built a 41-run stand with Rahul Chahar for the ninth wicket and closed in on the relatively less competitive target of 160 before getting out in the 18th over, just after being denied a six on the previous ball. When he got out, the Punjab side needed 37 off 15 balls and looked all set to achieve the target.
In total, Jitesh scored 234 runs at an average of 29.25 and a brilliant strike rate of 163.34 in 12 games to make a name for himself.
Wriddhiman Saha – Gujarat Titans: Price Rs 1.9 cr
Wriddhiman Saha featured in various controversies before the start of the IPL as he was involved in a spat with a famous cricket journalist who was later banned by the BCCI. The journalist also said that he will sue Saha.
In the first three games, the out of favour India Test wicketkeeper didn’t get the chance in the playing eleven. But eventually, when he did, he did not look back and started playing with all freedom, giving a quick start to Gujarat Titans and relieving Shubman Gill of low strike rate pressure.
In fact, these quickfire starts by the 37-year-old Siliguri born player gave Gill ample time to settle down and play freely, thus making it beneficial for his team. In eleven matches, Saha scored 317 runs at an average of 31.70
He scored three fifties, one of which came in the Qualifier 1 as Titans chased down 189 to reach the final. This was the second-best season for Saha as a batter in his 15-year long career. He was bought for just Rs 1.9 crore
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