3 players who earned a call-up to Indian team via domestic cricket in the IPL era
Ever since the IPL started, the Indian Premier League has become the stage for the rising stars of Indian cricket to display their talent to the BCCI selection committee. Several uncapped cricketers performed well for the IPL franchises and earned a call-up to the Indian team.
Before the start of the Indian Premier League, the domestic tournaments were considered for the national team selection. However, in the IPL era, the stars of the T20 league have even got a place in the Test squad because of their performances in the league.
While BCCI has majorly focused on the Indian Premier League while picking new players in the national team, here's a list of three such players who made it to the Indian team, riding on their domestic cricket performances in the IPL era.
#1 Mukesh Kumar earned a national call-up before IPL debut
The latest name to feature on this list is Mukesh Kumar. The right-arm pacer impressed the selectors with his performances for Bengal in domestic cricket. He has bagged 26 wickets in 24 List-A matches at an economy rate of 5.10. In first-class cricket, Kumar has accounted for 149 wickets in just 39 games.
Courtesy of his brilliant numbers in domestic tournaments, Kumar earned a call-up to the Indian ODI squad for the series against South Africa in late 2022. It is pertinent to note that he had not received an IPL contract before the selectors picked him in the Indian ODI squad.
Kumar finally earned a deal from the Delhi Capitals at the 2023 mini auction. He had a decent season with DC, and now, he has been selected in the Indian Test squad and T20I squad as well for the upcoming West Indies tour.
#2 Parvez Rasool
Jammu and Kashmir-based all-rounder Parvez Rasool made his Indian Premier League debut for the Pune Warriors in 2013. He played two matches for the franchise and picked up one wicket.
In the Vijay Hazare Trophy 2013/14 season, Rasool starred for Jammu and Kashmir, scoring 111 runs and picking up 10 wickets in just five games. Thanks to his all-round show for his team, Rasool earned a call-up to the Indian ODI squad even though he managed just a solitary wicket in three matches of the 2014 IPL season.
Rasool made his debut against Bangladesh in June 2014. However, that game proved to be the only ODI Rasool has played so far.
#3 Rishi Dhawan
Rishi Dhawan made his T20I debut for the Indian team in a match against Zimbabwe on June 18, 2016. He played only two games in the 2016 Indian Premier League season, where he scored 14 runs and picked up two wickets.
Still, Dhawan earned a call-up to the Indian T20I team for the Zimbabwe tour because of his consistent domestic performances. Like Parvez Rasool, Dhawan played just one T20I match though, where he scored one run and returned with figures of 1/42 in four overs.
Dhawan did not get a chance to play in the Indian Premier League from 2017 to 2021. He finally returned last year when Punjab Kings signed him.