Indian T20 League 2022 begins with a blockbuster clash that pits Chennai against Kolkata at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on Saturday, March 26. The two sides last met in the Indian T20 League 2021 final, with Chennai emerging victorious and clinching the title.

Both sides are no strangers to success in the Indian T20 League, with Chennai having four titles to their name while Kolkata have clinched the coveted prize twice.

However, the head-to-head between the teams is dominated by Chennai, who have 17 wins in 25 meetings with Kolkata. The latter have won this fixture on eight occasions.

Ahead of the Indian T20 League 2022 season opener between the two teams, we look at a few key battles between the players from the opposing camps, which could decide the outcome of the contest.

Chennai vs Kolkata key player battles

MS Dhoni vs Varun Chakravarthy

While a player of MS Dhoni’s calibre can roll back the years in the blink of an eye, the former Chennai skipper has found it challenging to get going against Kolkata spinner Varun Chakravarthy in recent times. In fact, Chakravarthy has dismissed Dhoni in all three innings that he has bowled to the Chennai legend in the Indian T20 League.

Since Dhoni is known for being a good player of spin, his struggles against Chakravarthy come as somewhat of a surprise. Besides being dismissed three times in as many innings against the Kolkata spinner, Dhoni managed just 10 runs off the 12 balls he faced against Chakravarthy. If Dhoni does come in to provide Chennai with a flourishing touch to finish their innings, there is no doubt that Chakravarthy should be Kolkata’s go-to bowler.

MS Dhoni record vs Varun Chakravarthy
Innings	Runs scored	Balls faced	Dismissed	Strike rate
3	10	12	3	83.33

Ambati Rayudu vs Sunil Narine

Another veteran from Team Chennai who has uncharacteristically struggled against a spinner from Kolkata is middle-order batter Ambati Rayudu. For the most part, the right-hander has looked comfortable against spin but has generally struggled whenever facing the charismatic finger spin of Sunil Narine.

The man from the Caribbean has the edge over Rayudu in the head-to-head battle between the two players. While Narine has dismissed Rayudu thrice in 12 innings against Chennai in the Indian T20 League, what stands out even more is the Indian batter’s numbers against Narine. Rayudu has managed just 49 runs from 55 balls against Narine and is likely to have similar problems against the spinner come Saturday.  

Ambati Rayudu record vs Sunil Narine
Innings	Runs scored	Balls faced	Dismissed	Strike rate
12	49	55	3	89.09

Dwayne Bravo vs Andre Russell

One more intriguing battle that we are likely to see in this contest is one between two teammates from the international stage. Andre Russell facing Dwayne Bravo has given cricket fans plenty of memories over the years, and there’s no reason why Indian T20 League 2022 should be any different when the two all-rounders from the Caribbean square off in the middle.

Numbers indicate that Russell enjoys batting against Bravo in their player battle. In four innings where Bravo has bowled to Russell, the Kolkata all-rounder has smashed 78 runs from 30 balls at a strike rate of 260 without ever being dismissed. Conversely, Russell has bowled 11 balls to Bravo over two innings, with the latter managing just 11 runs in that time and being dismissed once.

Dwayne Bravo vs Andre Russell
Batsmen	Bowler	Innings	Runs scored	Balls faced	Dismissed	Strike rate
Dwayne Bravo	Andre Russell	2	11	11	1	100.00
Andre Russell	Dwayne Bravo	4	78	30	0	260.0

Author: Andre Pitts

Featured photo: AFP / MANJUNATH KIRAN / ARUN SARKAR

India left-arm pacer T Natarajan is doubtful for the upcoming T20I series against England due to a shoulder injury, the ANI has reported.

According to the report, the 29-year-old is racing against time as he is currently undergoing rehabilitation at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Bengaluru.

Natarajan made his international debut in the third ODI against Australia on December 2 in Canberra. Subsequently, he was the wrecker-in-chief for Team India in the T20I series as he helped the visitors beat Australia 2-1. Natarajan was the highest wicket-taker in the T20I series as he claimed six wickets in three matches at an average of 13.83.

"He is down with a knee and shoulder injury and is in doubt for the T20I series. Will have to take it one day at a time and it is a race against time," an NCA source was quoted as saying to the news agency.

Meanwhile, spinner Varun Chakravarthy has failed to clear the mandatory fitness test yet again by the BCCI. Chakravarthy could be replaced by Rahul Chahar in the squad as the latter would be a like for like replacement and was in the reserves for the Test series. The spinner has earlier played a T20I for India against the West Indies.

Interestingly, this is not the first time that Varun Chakravarthy will be missing on a potential India debut. The 29-year-old was ruled out of India’s tour of Australia due to a shoulder injury. Chakravarthy was the highest wicket-taker of the Kolkata franchise in the Indian T20 League last year.

The mystery spinner was picked in the Indian T20I squad for the England series after he had undergone a lengthy rehab at NCA. 

The upcoming five-match T20I series will be played at the newly named Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad starting on March 12.

India's T20I squad: Virat Kohli (captain), Rohit Sharma (vice-captain), KL Rahul, Shikhar Dhawan, Shreyas Iyer, Suryakumar Yadav, Hardik Pandya, Rishabh Pant (wicket-keeper), Ishan Kishan (wicket-keeper), Yuzvendra Chahal, Varun Chakravarthy, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Rahul Tewatia, T Natarajan, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Deepak Chahar, Navdeep Saini, Shardul Thakur.

Feature image courtesy: AFP / Brenton Edwards

This is the eleventh in a series of features where we will be taking a detailed dive into the various factors that stood out during the course of the Indian T20 League 2020 season.

An exhilarating season of the Indian T20 League came to an expected end as Mumbai lifted the title. In what was an odd season, quite a few sensational records were broken including a world record number of Super Overs in a day. 

“They say anything can and usually does happen in the Indian T20 League," said Lee.

"This season, however, I saw some records unfold that I wouldn't have thought possible! Shikhar Dhawan, who had never even scored a century in the league before this season, scored not one but two consecutive tons, which for me was absolutely unexpected. Then there was Mohammed Siraj's stunning display of swing bowling that earned him a record first double wicket-maiden in league history. No less impressive also was Varun Chakravarthy's 5-fer that absolutely shattered Delhi's middle order to bits.�?/p>

Here we take a glance at some unexpected records that tumbled in during the season.

Shikhar Dhawan's back-to-back tons

It's been 13 seasons since the Indian T20 League began, but not once had a batsman hit back-to-back centuries in the tournament. Oddly enough, it was Shikhar Dhawan, who never had hit a century in his Indian T20 League career before this season, who broke the record. He hit a 101* vs Chennai after hitting back-to-back half-centuries before that game and followed it up with a 106* vs Punjab. The Delhi opener had a stellar season and finished as the second-highest run-scorer.

Siraj's sensational spell

Often seen as a third-wheel in bowling attacks, Mohammed Siraj turned up with a dream spell against Kolkata. Siraj began his spell with a stunning double-wicket maiden. But he wasn't done there. He went on to take another wicket-maiden and ended the game with figures of three for 8 in his four overs. As many as 16 of his 24 deliveries were dot balls. Kolkata went on to record just 84 for 8 in their 20 overs, the lowest total in the season.

Varun Chakravarthy and a rare five-for

Varun Chakravarthy had a roller-coaster season where he went from being the third spinner in the team to the frontline spinner and made it to the Indian team for the Australia T20Is only to be ruled out of it later with an injury. The mystery spinner from Tamil Nadu was Kolkata's best bowler on display and picked up a rare five-wicket haul. Chakravarthy's five-fer against Delhi was the first and only five-wicket haul in the season. It was also the second time an uncapped Indian had taken a five-wicket haul in the league. 

Nortje and the speed factor

Anrich Nortje was perhaps the find of the season for Delhi. A replacement player, the South African set the tournament alight with his pace and recorded the fastest delivery the league had seen (among recorded balls) when he delivered a 156kmph delivery against Rajasthan. Four of the fastest deliveries in the season were recorded by Nortje as he lit the season with his fiery pace.  

Record viewership

The pandemic and the situation surrounding it had made the 13th edition of the league a massive mess before it began. This, however, took a massive u-turn during the season as we saw a record-breaking increase of 28% in the viewership in comparison to 2019. While an increase in the viewership was expected with there being no crowds in the ground and more free time for people in general, the massive spike in viewership was unprecedented.

Feature image courtesy: Twitter / @IndianT20League

Opener Rohit Sharma has been included in India's Test squad for the Australia tour, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) announced on Monday while releasing an updated squad for the entire tour.

"The BCCI Medical Team has been monitoring Rohit Sharma’s fitness and has briefed All-India Senior Selection Committee on the same. In consultation with Mr Sharma, it has been decided to rest him for the ODIs and T20Is in Australia to regain full fitness and he has been included in India’s Test squad for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy," BCCI said in a statement.

While Sharma has been included, spinner Varun Chakravarthy has been omitted owing to his shoulder injury, with Thangarasu Natarajan coming in to fill the void. 

"The spinner has been ruled out of the T20I series owing to a shoulder injury. The selectors have named T Natarajan as a replacement," the statement added.

Furthermore, captain Virat Kohli's request of travelling back to India after the first Test has been granted by the board. "At the selection committee meeting held on October 26th, 2020, Mr Virat Kohli had informed the BCCI about his plans to return to India after the first Test in Adelaide. The BCCI has granted paternity leave to the Indian captain. He will return after the first Test against Australia in Adelaide."

Meanwhile, other developments include the return for Sanju Samson to the ODI setup, and a call on pacer Ishant Sharma's fitness has also been taken. "The senior Indian fast bowler has been undergoing his rehab at the National Cricket Academy in Bengaluru. Once he fully recovers and gains sufficient match fitness, he will be added to India’s Test squad."

India's T20I squad: Virat Kohli (Captain), Shikhar Dhawan, Mayank Agarwal, KL Rahul (vice-captain and wicket-keeper), Shreyas Iyer, Manish Pandey, Hardik Pandya, Sanju Samson (wicket-keeper), Ravindra Jadeja, Washington Sundar, Yuzvendra Chahal, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohd. Shami, Navdeep Saini, Deepak Chahar, T Natarajan.

India's ODI squad: Virat Kohli (Captain), Shikhar Dhawan, Shubman Gill, KL Rahul (vice-captain & wicket-keeper), Shreyas Iyer, Manish Pandey, Hardik Pandya, Mayank Agarwal, Ravindra Jadeja, Yuzvendra Chahal, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohd. Shami, Navdeep Saini, Shardul Thakur, Sanju Samson (wicket-keeper).

India's Test squad: Virat Kohli (Captain), Rohit Sharma, Mayank Agarwal, Prithvi Shaw, KL Rahul, Cheteshwar Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane (vice-captain), Hanuma Vihari, Shubman Gill, Wriddhiman Saha (wicket-keeper), Rishabh Pant (wicket-keeper), Jasprit Bumrah, Mohd. Shami, Umesh Yadav, Navdeep Saini, Kuldeep Yadav, Ravindra Jadeja, R. Ashwin, Mohd. Siraj.

Feature image courtesy: AFP / Peter Parks, Arun Sankar

Kolkata spinner Varun Chakravarthy, who has been picked for India's T20I squad against Australia, is reportedly struggling with a shoulder injury so much so that he cannot throw a ball. It is being quoted that the spinner has a labrum tear in his shoulder which is not affecting his bowling, but is putting pressure on his throws. He has been struggling with the problem for a long while, but the extent nettled as the Indian T20 League progressed.

• India tour of Australia: Maiden call-up for Cameron Green, Henriques returns

The 29-year-old was declared fit by in the fitness report submitted by the Indian team’s physio Nitin Patel before being named in the squad. “The selectors weren’t informed about the injury. Now it’s up to the selectors to pick Varun for the Australian tour or not. It will be selectors call,�?a BCCI official told The Indian Express.

The fitness of the BCCI-contracted players during the Indian T20 League is assessed by the franchise itself, but in case of an injury, it has to keep the BCCI physio in the loop. And Indian Express quote that Kolkata passed on the information of the injury after their Indian T20 League ended, which is even after the squads were announced. 

• India tour of Australia: Boxing Day Test likely to allow fans in stadium

The news comes as a major blow as India already have a few of their senior players nursing their respective injuries. Rohit Sharma was barred from all three formats. The vice-captain, however, made a comeback in Mumbai's final few games of the Indian T20 League. Apart from the opener, wicketkeeper-batsman Wriddhiman Saha and pacer Ishant Sharma are also struggling with injuries.

Meanwhile, India's tour of Australia kicks off with three ODIs from November 27, followed by T20s from December 4 before the first of the four Tests starts on December 17.

Feature image courtesy: Twitter / @ICC

Kolkata and Rajasthan will go head-to-head in both teams' final match of the season, as the two will fight for their playoff lives in Sunday's encounter.

Both teams are level on points at 12 but will need a mathematical miracle to stay alive in the competition. However, before they pray for results elsewhere to go their way, both teams need a win to get to 14 points and keep themselves in contention.

Here are the key facts from the contest:

Can Narine stifle Samson?

Sanju Samson is the definition of bipolar. On his day, the talented batsman can single-handedly massacre a bowling unit but most days, Samson will play a loose shot and hit the showers early.

While Samson has been hot and cold throughout his career, his battle against Kolkata’s Sunil Narine has only gone one way and it is the West Indian's.

In nine matches against Narine, Samson has scored just 36 runs in 45 balls and has been dismissed by the veteran spinner. Given his recent form, Kolkata would be wary of Samson but they have the perfect weapon in their arsenal to neutralize his threat.

Players to watch out for:

Kolkata �?Varun Chakravarty

While Sunil Narine and Pat Cummins were expected to be Kolkata’s aces with the ball, it has mystery spinner Varun Chakravarty that has done the damage with the ball for his side. The 29-year-old has picked 15 wickets this season at a good economy rate of 7.27 and his form of late has been absolutely stellar. Chakravarty has picked nine wickets in his last five matches and Kolkata will be hopeful that he can be the difference-maker in their last match of the season.

Rajasthan �?Ben Stokes

Opening the innings has done wonders for Ben Stokes. The Englishman scored an unbeaten century against table-toppers Mumbai, guiding his side to victory and then followed that up with a sensational half-century against Punjab that helped set the team’s tempo with the bat. In addition to his 50, Stokes also picked up a couple of wickets after finally being cleared to bowl by the team’s medical staff. Rajasthan will be looking towards their talisman to guide them to a win and keep their season alive.

Stats to watch out for

3: Rajasthan's Shreyas Gopal needs three wickets to complete 50 wickets in the Indian T20 League.

5: While Rajasthan have won five games out of six while chasing, Kolkata have won five out of six batting first.

38: In-form Kolkata batsman Nitish Rana needs 38 runs to complete 2,500 runs in T20s.

50: This will be Steve Smith’s 50th match for Rajasthan in the Indian T20 League.

80: Dinesh Karthik needs 80 runs to complete 1000 runs in the league for Kolkata.

Writer’s Pick

Rajasthan are coming into this contest on the back of two successive wins against two of the most in-form sides in the league. Kolkata on the other hand suffered, what seems to be, a season-ending loss against the worst team in the league. It's Rajasthan for the win in this contest.

Feature image courtesy: AFP / Dibyangshu Sarkar

A sensational hard-hitting display from Ravindra Jadeja in the final two overs put a massive dent to Kolkata's hopes of achieving a playoff berth in this year's Indian T20 League as Chennai won their second game on the trot for the first time this season. Kolkata, riding on the back of Nitish Rana's 61-ball 87, put 172/5 on board and while Chennai looked out of sorts at times, Jadeja snatched the game right at the death by scoring a quickfire 11-ball 31. A win for Chennai, meanwhile, means Mumbai have become the first team to qualify for playoffs.

That said, here are some key talking points from Chennai's six-wicket win over Kolkata

Sunil Narine's form continues to fickle

A lot was expected from Sunil Narine ahead of the season, and while the West Indies all-rounder has been decent with the ball, his returns with the bat have been truly underwhelming. 

On Thursday in what was his 350th T20 game, the all-rounder, who came at No. 3, departed after scoring a mere seven off as many deliveries. That’s Narine’s fifth single-digit score in eight innings in this year’s Indian T20 League. It is rightly troubling, but there’s more to it. Getting out in seven deliveries means it was the sixth time this season where he departed after playing less than 10 balls.

Sunil Narine in 2020 Indian T20 League
Balls faced	Dismissals
1-10	6
11-20	1
21-30	0
30 plus	1

To say Chennai have always been Narine’s bane would be an understatement to make. Their bowlers have always managed to get the better of him and the fact that since 2017, all of Narine’s dismissal against Chennai have come against spin - Harbhajan Singh (2), Mitchell Santner (2), Ravindra Jadeja and Karn Sharma - is the perfect example of it.

Shane Watson’s spinning voodoo

Shane Watson was back in the fold after missing two back-to-back games - a defeat against Mumbai and a win over Bangalore - but failed to assert his claim. Opening the batting alongside Ruturaj Gaikwad, the Aussie scored a dull-witted 19-ball 14 at a lowly strike rate of 73.68 before being dismissed Varun Chakravarthy. This is, in fact, the fifth time that Watson was dismissed by a right-arm spinner this season. His stats against this bowling type further underlines how substandard he has been against them:

• 79 runs
• 59 balls
• 5 dismissals
• 15.80 avg

Before tonight’s game, Watson had scored just 30 runs off as many deliveries in seven innings against Narine while being dismissed a whopping five times, which also includes the last meeting of these two teams earlier in the season. Despite a steady start, Watson never really looked settled on the night, and we might have seen the last of him in the Indian T20 League.

Dhoni’s failure to get past Chakravarthy

There are only a handful of bowlers who have dismissed MS Dhoni twice in a single Indian T20 League season. On Thursday, spinner Varun Chakravarthy became only the sixth man to do so after his scorching delivery managed to breeze through the Chennai captain to find its way to the leg stump. Dhoni, as has been his trend this season, has struggled to go big against Chakravarthy in particular, having scored just nine off many deliveries against him, while hitting a solitary boundary.

Here is the list of bowlers who have dismissed Dhoni twice in the same Indian T20 League season:

Bowler	Innings	Runs	Balls	Outs	Avg	SR	4s	6s	Dots	Year
Pragyan Ojha	2	16	22	2	8	72.7	0	1	13	2008
Roelof van der Merwe	2	19	19	2	9.5	100	0	0	5	2009
Zaheer Khan	4	26	13	2	13	200	2	2	5	2011
Kuldeep Yadav	2	10	9	2	5	111.1	0	1	5	2017
Jasprit Bumrah	4	26	20	2	13	130	1	2	8	2017
Varun Chakravarthy	2	9	9	2	4.5	100	1	0	5	202

Off day for Ferguson

Lockie Ferguson made an instant impact for Kolkata in the Indian T20 League, picking six wickets in his last four appearances (before tonight’s game). On Thursday though, the New Zealander was hit for 54 runs his quota of four overs; most by any Kolkata bowler in the ongoing season. He went for nine runs in his first over, but Ruturaj Gaikwad hit 12 past him in his second. And while his third over was decent, to say the least, Ravindra Jadeja took a swing at him in the penultimate over, hitting 20 runs to put a massive dent in Kolkata’s hopes of achieving the final playoff spot.

Feature image courtesy: Twitter / @IndianT20League

Kolkata will be looking to ward off Punjab’s challenge for a top-four spot finish when the two teams square off at Sharjah on Monday. The two-time champions won their last encounter against Delhi and will know that a victory over Punjab will see them have one foot in the 2020 Indian T20 League playoffs.

Punjab, meanwhile, are one of the in-form teams at the moment and are unbeaten in their last four matches. They beat Hyderabad in their previous outing and will be aware that getting the better of Kolkata will see them leapfrog Eoin Morgan’s boys on net run rate in the points table.

That said, Kolkata will back themselves to beat Punjab and consolidate their top-four spot, having already come out on top in the earlier meeting between the teams this season. A look at the head-to-head between the sides also paints a bright picture for Kolkata, who have won 18 of the 26 clashes against Punjab. Here, we look at a few interesting battles and key players who can make a difference during Monday’s contest.

Dinesh Karthik needs to start firing for Kolkata

Dinesh Karthik has struggled with his batting this season, having scored 148 runs at a strike rate of 122.31 and an average of 14.8. It’s Karthik’s third-worst campaign in terms of runs scored after more than 10 innings and his average and strike rate are the second-worst and fourth-worst respectively for all seasons. The fact that he has just four thirty-plus scores, including three fifties since 2019, doesn’t inspire confidence either.

Perhaps batting at number 6 can be the answer to his problems. His one innings at that position this year saw him score a quick-fire 29 at a strike rate of 207.1. That knock only adds to the notion of number six being his best position and his stats at six in the past backs him to do well. From 22 innings batting at six in the Indian T20 League, Karthik’s scored 450 at an average of 32.1 and a strike rate of 207.1 �?his best numbers in any position.

Sunil Narine against Punjab’s top order

Sunil Narine has taken 28 wickets against Punjab �?the most against any team in the Indian T20 League. He needs two more scalps against them to become the highest wicket-taker against Punjab but will know that it won’t be easy against the opposition’s top order. Even without the recent tweak in his bowling action that’s taken a lot away from his bowling, Narine never really had the best of records against the batsmen in Punjab’s top order as the table below shows.

Batsman	Innings	Runs Scored	Dismissals	Strike Rate
KL Rahul	5	78	2	195.00
Mayank Agarwal	5	28	1	133.33
Chris Gayle	8	48	2	82.75

Sunil Narine’s record against Punjab’s top-order

Players to watch:

Kolkata �?Varun Chakravarthy

Kolkata’s leg-break spinner Varun Chakravarthy is currently top of their wicket-taking chart after 11 matches, with 12 scalps to his name �?more than Pat Cummins, Lockie Ferguson and Sunil Narine. He’s averaging 23.50 and has become Kolkata’s go-to spin option over Narine after the West Indian’s was pulled up for a suspect bowling action and came under the microscope. His figures of 5 for 20 against Delhi in Kolkata’s last match is the best by a bowler this season and with confidence running through his veins, expect him to make his presence felt against Punjab.

Punjab �?KL Rahul

Orange Cap holder with 567 runs so far, Punjab’s skipper KL Rahul will pose a massive threat to Kolkata’s bowlers. He will have good memories of hitting Kolkata’s bowlers for 74 in their earlier meeting this season and will be hoping to beat the two-time champions this time around after inexplicably losing to them in the last encounter between the teams. His average of 63 as well as strike rate of 133.41 gives us an insight into the type of form he has demonstrated this year. Rahul’s ability to find the boundary ropes effortlessly is another one of his strong suits with only Shikhar Dhawan (52) hitting more fours than the Punjab skipper’s 48 this season. 

Stats to watch out for:

1: Wickets required by Glenn Maxwell to reach 100 T20 wickets.

2: Wickets Sunil Narine needs to become the highest wicket-taker versus Punjab in the Indian T20 League

8: Runs Andre Russell needs to reach 1500 runs in the Indian T20 League.

61: Runs Rahul Tripathi needs to reach 1000 runs in the Indian T20 League.

300: Dinesh Karthik will play his 300th T20.

Writer’s pick:

Punjab have been on a roll of late and it will come as a surprise if they don’t get the better of Kolkata on Monday, having contrived to inexplicably lose their previous match against the two-time champions. While Kolkata may have won their last game and will be confident, Punjab will head into the contest with more momentum and are the likelier winners.

Feature image courtesy: AFP / Sajjad Hussain

We are past the halfway stage of the 2020 edition of the Indian T20 League in UAE and quite a few trends have popped up with the large grounds and uncanny wickets. While there have been some remarkable bowling performances from quite a few standout bowlers, some of these names have flown under the radar despite impressing right through the season.

Axar Patel (Punjab)

Delhi were dealt a major blow when Amit Mishra was ruled out of the season and Ravichandran Ashwin missed a couple of games. While the overseas pace duo of Kagiso Rabada and Anrich Nortje has hogged headlines alongside Ashwin, Axar Patel has done a remarkable holding job. Axar has been impactful with his middle overs bowling where he restricts teams and forces them to take on the death bowling where Rabada and Nortje await. In 21 overs in the middle overs phase this season, Axar has taken four wickets and conceded runs at a miserly rate of 5.67. The economy shows why he has forced teams onto the back-foot and given Delhi a distinct advantage.

Kartik Tyagi (Rajasthan)

After remaining on the bench at the beginning of the season, Kartik Tyagi has walked into the Rajasthan line-up and made a solid impact with the ball to give Jofra Archer some much-needed support. Among bowlers to bowl at least 30 balls in the powerplay this season, Tyagi has the third-best strike-rate, and he has also been terrific in the last five overs of the innings, conceding runs at just 7.50 when most pacers have gone at over 10 runs per over. Tyagi's presence has given Rajasthan a major boost alongside Archer in the pace department. His wickets this season include Jonny Bairstow, Quinton de Kock, Shreyas Iyer, Virat Kohli, Shimron Hetmyer and Shane Watson.

Murugan Ashwin (Punjab)

Punjab started their season with Ravi Bishnoi as their primary spinner but slowly Murugan Ashwin has come in to aid him in the middle overs. With lots of guile and a well-disguised googly, Ashwin has been brilliant for Punjab in cutting down the run-flow and picking up wickets when needed. Ashwin has complemented Bishnoi perfectly for Punjab and the dual leg-spin threat in the middle overs has worked well for Punjab. Murugan Ashwin has picked up big wickets this season including that of AB de Villiers, Aaron Finch, Riyan Parag and Washington Sundar among others.

Varun Chakravarthy (Kolkata)

When Kuldeep Yadav once again failed to make a big impact for Kolkata, they brought Varun Chakravarthy into the starting XI and the mystery spinner from Tamil Nadu has proved more than handy. He is the sixth-most economical spinner in the season with an economy of 7.31 and has picked up seven wickets. With Kolkata's performances going awry, Chakravarthy's contributions have flown under the radar. His victims this season include David Warner, Jonny Bairstow, MS Dhoni, Shikhar Dhawan and Suryakumar Yadav among others.

Feature image courtesy: Twitter / @IndianT20League

Every Indian T20 League season throws up some amazing names and newer talent, while we also see existing players step up for their teams to become key players. This season, with the tournament conducted outside India, we have had some outstanding players showing what they are capable of and becoming an integral part of their respective teams. Here are three of the most exciting yet unexpected players who have been in full bloom this season.

Anrich Nortje (Delhi)

Anrich Nortje set the speed gun racing and bowled the three fastest balls in the season, including the fastest ever since 2012 edition of the Indian T20 League in the game against Rajasthan. While impressive on the pace front, it is Nortje's incredible control and effectiveness across phases of an innings that has made him a terrific replacement player for Delhi who called upon him after Chris Woakes withdrew from the season. Nortje has 10 wickets in the season at an average of 23.5 and an economy rate of 7.34 which is even better than Rabada. An impact player this year for Delhi, Nortje wasn't even expected to start for them.

Mayank Agarwal (Punjab)

While Mayank Agarwal has been around in the Indian T20 League for nearly a decade, he has never had a better season before with the bat. Mayank has compiled 382 runs at an average of 47.75 and a stunning strike-rate of 161.18 this year. A terrific hitter of pace and spin alike, Mayank has been a force at the top of the order for Punjab in 2020. His previous highest tally in a season was 322 last year. While there were signs of improved form, Mayank has taken the 2020 edition by storm with his terrific striking prowess. Alongside a subdued KL Rahul, Mayank has constantly stepped up and helped Punjab to rousing starts.

Varun Chakravarthy (Kolkata)

Not even expected to start for his franchise, Varun Chakravarthy has become an elite spinner in the Kolkata ranks and has been leading their spin attack in the absence of Sunil Narine and the loss of form of Kuldeep Yadav. Chakravarthy, who had a forgettable debut last year for Punjab, seems to have a defined role in the Kolkata setup this year. The Tamil Nadu spinner has been tidy with his bowling, most importantly using his impressive variations lavishly to confuse batsmen. In the 2020 edition of the tournament, Chakravarthy has played six matches taking five wickets at an economy of 7.46. Chakravarthy has been used in tandem with the pacers and his restriction of batsmen with defensive tactics and the odd-flighted leggie or googly and paid rich dividends this year.

Feature image courtesy: Twitter.com / Delhi