IPL has always been known for harnessing young talents from across the remotest nook and crannies of the nation and last night witnessed the birth of another young sensation, Sai Sudarshan, who was seen rubbing shoulders with icons of the sport and managed to belt out a handful of seraphic strikes that would play the perfect anchor to Shubman Gill’s early madness.
Despite being new to the glitz and glam of IPL, success and Sai Sudarshan has a long relationship. He grabbed the attention in the 2021 Tamil Nadu Premier League as he became the second-highest scorer of the tournament with 358 runs at a staggering average of 71.60 and a strike rate of 143.77.
He was elemental in paving the path to the eliminators for the Lyca Kovai Kings. However, the success didn’t really come at once as his first season with the Chepauk Super Gillies returned bare minimal numbers and there was hardly anything significant that the southpaw could conjure.
Well, sports has always run in his genes as his father was an athlete, who donned the Indian colours at the South Asian (SAF) games while his mother has embodied Tamil Nadu in volleyball. He has also been the opening partner of Yashasvi Jaiswal for India A in the U19 Challenger Trophy in 2019-20.
The last season of TNPL that witnessed the meteoric rise of Sai started with a banger where he scored 87 runs off 43 deliveries against the Spartans. He posted fluid strokeplay, bossing pacers and spinners alike. He was called up for representing the state side in the shorter versions of the game and he came out in blazing colours at the number three position, bridging the gap between the heavy-hitting monikers of the side.
He started his domestic campaign with a fiery 19-ball-35 while he turned up the volume against Kerala where he hammered a 31-ball-46. Now, are these his only capabilities? Well, he is also known for intermittent bouts of bowling that have seen him claim an important wicket against Bengal in the 50-over format.
Last night his batting was simply a sight for the sore eyes as he braved past the likes of Kagiso Rabada, Rahul Chahar and Liam Livingstone that kept the Titans very much in chase. He is an abled player of short balls that are often deemed as a bane for the batters. He is too good when he pulls or hooks the balls, a sign of tremendous talent.
More importantly, he has a keen eye for perfect timing and that makes his story even more entertaining. IPL still has a long way to go and with the team that Gujarat has, it will all be about collective displays than one single man warring for the entire side. It is important for them that they get their cards right because one slip and the entire house can come down in a trice.
