5 English players to watch in the 2020 IPL
English players have had a fascinating relationship with the Indian Premier League. It is well known now, especially in regards to the Kevin Pietersen incident of 2014, that the ECB were often reluctant to let their best players travel to India when they should be preparing for the start of the English season.
However, since the embarrassment of the 2015 World Cup, they have developed a new tact, one that sees the IPL as a vital learning curve and opportunity for white ball regulars and potential stars of the future.
The IPL has shown both the good and bad of English cricket. For instance Ben Stokes' incredible 2017 with both bat and ball, or Jonny Bairstow's dominance as a white ball opener in 2019 are both standouts. However, Jason Roy's miserable 2017 with the now defunct Gujarat Lions proves that it can often also be an incredibly tough time in an alien league for some of England's finest cricketers.
In this list then, we shall look at five English cricketers who have the potential to have an outstanding IPL tournament in 2020.
Also see – U19 world cup points table
#1 Sam Curran - Chennai Super Kings
Sam Curran moved from Kings XI Punjab to Chennai Super Kings for the extraordinary price of Rs 5.5 crore. Curran's 2019 IPL stats were not incredible, with 10 wickets at an economy of nearly 10 an over, and 95 runs at an extremely healthy strike-rate of 172.
Yet we must not overlook the fact that he was just 20 years of age, with a relatively little experience. Also, as is often said about Curran, he seems to just make things happen. This came to the fore when he steamrolled the Delhi Capitals in 2019, who fell from 144-3 to 152 all out after Curran's unforgettable hat-trick and figures of 4 for 11 sealed the victory.
The young man's handy ability with the bat is also an added bonus. He can be thrown in at the top of the order, given a free pass to strike. A strike rate of 172 the previous year and a high score of 55 prove he can be as destructive with the bat as he can with the ball.
Given the fact he is a year older, and has more experience under his belt, it is likely that Curran will be able to perform more consistently. If he is able to do this he could easily prove to be one of the most destructive all-rounders in this years IPL.