5 Maharaja Trophy 2024 stars who could bag their maiden IPL contract ft. Shubhang Hegde & Vidyadhar Patil
The 2024 Maharaja Trophy, formerly the Karnataka Premier League, saw a third different team crowned champions in as many editions, as the Mysore Warriors defeated the Bengaluru Blasters in the grand finale on September 1. The latter dominated the round-robin stage by winning seven of their nine completed games and topping the points table.
However, come the summit clash, they faltered to lose convincingly by 45 runs to miss out on an elusive Maharaja Trophy title.
Nevertheless, the Blasters produced several of the season's best performers who thrilled the Indian audiences with dazzling displays. Many players from the other five participating sides did much the same to help their respective teams push for the title with an eye on another grand prize - landing the highly-coveted IPL contract.
With the Mega Auction to happen in a few months for IPL 2025 and the ten franchises likely to undergo major changes, several 2024 Maharaja Trophy stars will hope to earn their maiden IPL contract.
On that note, here are five Maharaja Trophy 2024 stars who could bag the most cherished prize in Indian domestic cricket - a maiden IPL contract.
#1 Shubhang Hegde
It will be impossible for IPL franchises to look past all-rounder Shubhang Hegde when they scout for stars from the Maharaja Trophy. Playing for the Bengaluru Blasters, the 23-year-old enjoyed a dream run with bat and ball in the 2024 edition.
Despite batting in the middle order, Hegde finished with an impressive 201 runs at an average of over 50 and a strike rate of 151.12 in 12 outings. Add to that his 14 wickets at an average of 21.14 and an economy of 8.29, Hegde was undoubtedly the best all-rounder of the tournament.
He also helped the Blasters finish on top of the points table and produced excellent figures of 2/23 in the semi-final to help the side advance to the grand finale.
With T20 and especially the IPL being big on spin-bowling all-rounders like Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, and Ravichandran Ashwin, among others, Shubhang Hegde could be a frontrunner to bag his maiden IPL contract in the coming months.
#2 Vidyadhar Patil
More than the cumulative numbers, IPL teams often place more weight on the players' performances in the big games of the state T20 Leagues. Considering that, Mysore Warriors' pacer Vidyadhar Patil stakes a massive claim for an IPL contract.
The 23-year-old was consistent throughout the competition and further enhanced his reputation with his display in the summit clash. Defending 208, Patil broke the back of the star-studded Bengaluru Blasters unit by removing skipper Mayank Agarwal and their No.3 Bhuvan Raju in his first spell.
He returned to dismiss Aniruddha Joshi, who had just struck two maximums to land the dagger blow to the Blasters' chances. Patil's 3/19 in 4 overs on a placid Bengaluru pitch helped him take his tournament tally to 16 wickets (2nd) at an average of 17.25.
The value of a pacer picking up early wickets and shutting down an opponent at the end in a big final - Jasprit Bumrah in the 2024 T20 World Cup and Vidyadhar Patil in the Maharaja Trophy final. Could it be enough to push Patil for a maiden IPL contract? Only time will tell.
#3 LR Chethan
LR Chethan almost single-handedly won the Bengaluru Blasters the 2024 Maharaja Trophy with his heroics in the knockouts.
The 24-year-old enjoyed an impressive run through the league stages, providing the Blasters with prolific starts at the top. However, he turned it up a level in the semi-final and final with back-to-back half-centuries.
Chethan smashed a 51-ball 89* in the semi-final against Gulbarga Mystics to help the Blasters comfortably chase a tricky 156. The right-handed batter was back at it in the summit clash, playing a lone hand of 51 off 32 before being unfortunately run out, effectively sealing his side's fate.
Nevertheless, Chethan finished with 429 runs (3rd in the tournament) at an average of 42.90 and a strike rate of over 151, including four half-centuries. Add to this the ability to keep wickets and the youngster's name should be one to watch out for during the upcoming IPL Mega Auction.
#4 R Smaran
Once we move past the two finalists, the first name that springs to mind from the 2024 Maharaja Trophy is R Smaran from Gulbarga Mystics. A left-handed middle-order batter is a highly-valued commodity in the IPL and Smaran ticks those boxes.
The 21-year-old scored one of the three centuries in the competition, a brilliant 60-ball 104* against eventual champions Mysore Warriors to announce himself. He finished with 302 runs at an average of 43.14 and a strike rate of 145.19 in 10 matches.
Smaran's valuable middle-order contributions helped the Mystics qualify for the semi-final. With top-order batters aplenty among the IPL franchises, Smaran could be a left-field choice in the upcoming auction.
#5 LR Kumar
It is only fair that the leading wicket-taker in a competition predominantly played on flat tracks gets a mention among stars who may land a maiden IPL contract. That brings us to right-arm pacer LR Kumar from the Hubli Tigers, who finished with 17 wickets in only nine games at an outstanding average of 17.23.
His back-to-back impressive performances with five wickets to finish off the season against the Mysore Warriors (final round-robin game and the semi-final) had fans take notice.
Despite the Tigers losing the semi-final, LR Kumar impressed by removing the Player of the Tournament Karun Nair cheaply and finishing with figures of 3/37 in four overs.