Three Indian Premier League (IPL) teams made it to the semi-finals of the Champions League t20 2014 (CLT20). But there were many new names who impressed in the league stage and will be hot properties in other T20 league from hereon. Abhijit Banare lists a few of them.
Dilshan Munaweera: He was the leading scorer in the inaugural Sri Lankan Premier League in 2012. An aggressive batsman up the order, he could have very well gone unnoticed if the Barbados Tridents had not missed their key starts in the batting. Munaweera opened the Tridents’ campaign with a clinical display against a strong Chennai Super Kings side. Very few batsmen have that uncomplicated style of play and the ability to just go after the bowling. But consistency will be the key for him. His fellow countryman Kusal Perera too is in the same league of batsman but has failed to repeatedly grab the attention of the cricketing world.
Trent Boult: Indian pitches especially in T20s are known to be either a featherbed or slow enough to give spinners a chance to dominate. But Trent Boult and Tim Southee tested the batsmen in the qualifiers and on few occasions in league stage. While Tim Southee has been part of a few T20 franchisees, Boult could also find his way in to T20 leagues with this show. He hasn’t been a preferred option for the Kiwis in the limited overs and has been limited to being the leading Test bowler. But his performances with Northern Knights could change things around for his career.
Kane Williamson: Williamson is one of the most improved batsmen in the last one year. Williamson is among the finest players in the world adept in all three formats. Even in the shortest format, he played some orthodox shots and made for delightful viewing. Similar to Boult, there seemed to be a perception that he may not possess the aggression of a T20 batsman. But his 48-ball century and two fifties should be enough to show his abilities in the format.
Jonathan Carter: Except for the first match against Kings XI Punjab, Carter made major contributions in rest of the three matches with the unbeaten 111 being the standout innings. IPL in particular has seen a lot of West Indian talent flourishing. That should make Carter a valuable candidate in IPL.
Robbie Frylinck: All-rounders demand more value in the shortest format and not many would reject Frylinck after what he achieved in the CLT20 2014. He bowls with a good pace and in hindsight denied Lahore Lions a certain entry in to the semi-finals with his sparkling knock of 63 in 27 balls.
There were some others who impressed as well – Lahore Lions’ Aizaz Cheema and Saad Nasim (there could be many more names, if they are allowed in IPL) and Anton Devcich of Northern Knights made significant contributions for their team.
(Abhijit Banareis a reporter at CricketCountry. He is an avid quizzer and loves to analyse and dig out interesting facts which allows him to learn something new every day. Apart from cricket he also likes to keep a sharp eye on Indian politics, and can be followed on @AbhijitVirgo)
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