The much-awaited ICC T20 World Cup 2024 is not very far away. The ninth edition of the tournament will be taking place from June 1 to 29 in the United States of America and the West Indies.
The upcoming edition promises to be a thrilling affair as a record 20 teams will be fighting it out T20I supremacy. While the teams will be relying on the big names to get the work done for them, they will also be hoping that their youngsters deliver in a format which is widely believed to be tailor-made for this generation.
A number of highly-rated youngsters will be in action in the forthcoming ICC T20 World Cup 2024. So before the much-awaited tournament gets underway, we are taking a look at five youngsters who can make a big impact for their teams.
Matheesha Pathirana:
While Matheesha Pathirana needs no introduction thanks to his heroics in the IPL, he is yet to announce his arrival in international cricket. The highly-rated pacer has played only 6 T20Is for Sri Lanka so far and has picked up an impressive 11 wickets including a four-wicket haul.
What makes Pathirana special is not only his ability to take wickets at any stage of the game but also the ability to maintain a good economy-rate. Even in the ongoing IPL season when most of the bowlers have been taken to the cleaners, Pathirana has shown his class by remaining economical.
Talking about his IPL career so far, Pathirana made his debut in 2022 before announcing his arrival in 2023 by playing a key role in Chennai Super Kings’ triumphant campaign. He picked up 19 wickets in 12 games while maintaining an economy-rate of 8. In the ongoing season, Pathirana could play only six games due to an injury but still impressed as he picked up 13 wickets while having an economy-rate of less than 8.
Tristan Stubbs:
Tristan Stubbs will have to play a big role in the middle-order if South Africa want to win their first-ever T20 World Cup. The right-handed batsman has shown that he has the game to excel against both pacers and spinners by doing well in IPL 2024.
Playing for Delhi Capitals this season, Stubbs scored an impressive 378 runs in 14 games with the help of three centuries. He scored his runs at a strike-rate of more than 190 and hit an impressive 26 sixes during the tournament.
The South Africa team will be hoping for a similar display for him in the T20 World Cup. Talking about his record in international cricket, he has played 17 T20Is so far and has scored 239 runs with the help of one half-century.
Shamar Joseph:
Shamar Joseph took the cricketing world by storm with his performance during the Test series against Australia earlier this year. He rocked Australia with his pace and played a key role in West Indies registering a famous 1-1 draw on Australian soil.
He announced his arrival in Test cricket by dismissing superstar Steve Smith on the very first ball in his debut Test in Adelaide. He then went on to take the cricketing world by storm by taking a seven-wicket haul in the following game in Brisbane. Bowling with an injured toe, Joseph blew Australia away with pace and helped West Indies defend 216 runs to register their first Test win on the Australian soil since 1997.
The Test spell earned him his maiden IPL contract as well, as Lucknow Super Giants signed him up as an injury replacement. Joseph managed to play just one game in the powerplay but will be looking to impress in the T20 World Cup.
Rachin Ravindra:
All eyes will be on Rachin Ravindra in the upcoming T20 World Cup after his starring performance in the ODI World Cup last year. The youngster announced his arrival on the biggest stage of the game by playing a starring role for New Zealand in the World Cup, helping his team qualify for the semifinal.
With captain Kane Williamson missing a number of games due to injury, Ravindra emerged as New Zealand’s go-to man with the bat. He finished the tournament as the fourth highest run-scorer, scoring an impressive 578 runs in 10 games with the help of three centuries and two fifties.
The impressive display in the World Cup also earned him his maiden IPL contract. While he did not really hit the ground running in the IPL, he showed flashes of brilliance with the bat on a number of occasions. The southpaw is a good player of spin bowling and New Zealand will be banking on him heavily in the Caribbean conditions.
Yashasvi Jaiswal:
Another youngster who will be garnering a lot of attention is India’s Yashasvi Jaiswal. The selectors have shown faith in him by picking him ahead of the likes of Shubman Gill and KL Rahul and it is now up to the youngster to repay the faith.
The left-handed batsman has already made an impact in international cricket and will now be looking to deliver in his first ICC tournament. Earlier this year, he starred with the bat in the five-match Test series against England, scoring a record 712 runs with the help of two double-centuries.
Jaiswal has a good record in T20Is as well. In 17 T20Is for Team India so far, he has scored 502 runs with the help of one century and four half-centuries. He will be looking to form a formidable partnership with captain Rohit Sharma and bat India to their second World Cup title.
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