IPL 2022: 3 debutants who impressed in Week 1 of the tournament
IPL 2022 got underway last week in Mumbai with a battle between two-time winners Kolkata Knight Riders and defending champions Chennai Super Kings. KKR recorded a comfortable win against CSK that night.
Post that fixture, the cricket universe saw multiple thrilling matches in the first week of the IPL. Eight matches happened in the first week of the competition. With the exception of Chennai Super Kings, Mumbai Indians and Sunrisers Hyderabad, all franchises have opened their accounts in the IPL 2022 standings.
Some seasoned pros returned to form in the first week, and some debutants stole the show with their exceptional performances for the teams. In this listicle, we look at the three debutants who impressed the most in the first week of the new season.
#1 Ayush Badoni, Lucknow Super Giants
Former India U-19 player Ayush Badoni made his IPL debut for the Lucknow Super Giants this season. The Lucknow-based franchise have shown a lot of faith in the youngster as they sent him to bat above the experienced Krunal Pandya in their first two matches.
Badoni impressed in both games. He started slowly against the Gujarat Titans but ended up registering his maiden IPL half-ton. The right-handed batter scored 54 runs for LSG and rescued the team with Deepak Hooda after a top-order collapse.
In the next match, Badoni played a handy cameo of 19 runs from nine balls to support Evin Lewis and help the Lucknow Super Giants chase a massive 211-run target against defending champions Chennai Super Kings.
#2 Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Punjab Kings
Punjab Kings have established IPL stars like Shikhar Dhawan and Mayank Agarwal in their batting department, but the best performer for them in IPL 2022 so far has been Sri Lanka's Bhanuka Rajapaksa.
Playing in his maiden IPL season, the wicket-keeper batter has scored 74 runs off 31 balls at a strike rate of 238.70. He played an incredible cameo of 31 runs from just nine deliveries against the Kolkata Knight Riders last night.
Rajapaksa got an opportunity to keep the wickets for Punjab Kings in Jonny Bairstow's absence. With Bairstow set to be available soon, it will be interesting to see PBKS' overseas lineup for the next matches.
#3 Akash Deep, Royal Challengers Bangalore
Bengal's pace bowler Akash Deep received his maiden IPL cap ahead of Royal Challengers Bangalore's IPL 2022 match against Punjab Kings. The pacer was with RCB last year as well, but he only warmed the benches.
Having received a chance to play for RCB, Deep grabbed the opportunity with both hands and took four wickets in the first two matches. He bagged the wicket of the dangerous Liam Livingstone on his debut and followed it up with a three-wicket haul against the Kolkata Knight Riders.
Deep has been expensive with the ball, but his wicket-taking abilities have helped RCB a lot. The RCB fans will expect him to improve his economy rate in the upcoming IPL 2022 games.