IPL 2022: Time for Prithvi Shaw to take on more responsibility at the top
Prithvi Shaw has always been considered the next big thing in Indian cricket, however, the Mumbai cricketer is yet to live up to the faith imposed on him. Shaw, came into the IPL reckoning after he led India U-19 boys to a World Cup triumph in 2017.
The right-hander was picked by the Delhi Capitals in pursuit of building a IPL team for the future. The young opener has played crucial knocks in the top order for his franchise in the last few years, ensuring explosive starts in the powerplay.
Shaw's short career has seen the highs of becoming the youngest Indian to score a Test hundred, as well as seen the lows of getting banned for consumption of a banned substance unknowingly. Since then, he has witnessed a start-stop international career. Despite all the odds, Shaw has played crucial knocks for the Delhi franchise time and again.
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Lack of consistency: Shaw’s undoing
Before IPL 2022, Shaw was partnering Shikhar Dhawan at the top who took the role of anchoring the innings while the right-hander was able to deploy his aggressive game in the powerplay.
In the 2021 edition, Shaw came back strong after a disastrous international outing in Australia, giving solid starts in most games. In the current edition of the IPL, coach Ricky Ponting will be expecting the young opener to take on more responsibility as he has been a part of the setup for 4 years now.
His game in the powerplay is focused on utilizing the field restrictions to score maximum runs in the powerplay. However, in the process, the opposition knows there is always a wicket coming when you have an all-out attacking game.
Shaw has been found to have a weakness against the short ball and the opposition bowlers have utilized it to dismiss the DC opener time and again.
More responsibility needed from the opener
It is often said that when you are doing well, do better. Prithvi Shaw showed great character to fix his technical flaws after the Australian Test series to return with an impactful IPL last year.
His brilliance with the bat along with a calculated approach, especially while playing the pull shots, can be a perfect ingredient for a formidable opening combination along with Aussie David Warner.
Coach Ricky Ponting and skipper Rishabh Pant will be hoping Shaw lives up to expectations and takes on the responsibility of fulfilling the role entrusted upon him by the franchise.