A look back at some of the uncapped Indian players who performed well in IPL 2013
Rachna Shetty27-May-2013Mohit Sharma
On the list of the most successful bowlers in IPL 2013 during the Powerplay overs, Mohit Sharma is second only to Mitchell Johnson (16), having taken 15 wickets at an economy rate of 6.36. Given their struggle to find consistent Indian pacers, Mohit proved to be a valuable pick for Chennai Super Kings. The Haryana pace bowler finished the tournament with 20 wickets, his quick pace, focused line and length, and deliveries like the back-of-the-hand slower ball, producing consistent breakthroughs at the start of the innings. His best performance came against Delhi Daredevils where he dismissed David Warner, Manprit Juneja and Virender Sehwag. Only once this season did he concede more than 10 runs per over, against Royal Challengers Bangalore in a rain-curtailed, eight-over-a-side match.Stuart Binny
Even as Shane Watson hogged the headlines as one of the best allrounders of the tournament, Stuart Binny went about his season with calm efficiency, pulling Rajasthan Royals out of some tricky chases. His unbeaten 41 against Super Kings, where he partnered Shane Watson at the end, put Royals in the playoffs. In their next match against Mumbai Indians, he turned the floundering innings around with an unbeaten 37, threatening Mumbai after they had reduced Royals to 28 for 4. His effective medium-pace only embellished his value to the team.Karan Sharma
In a line-up comprising Dale Steyn, Thisara Perera and Amit Mishra, young Karan Sharma was the bowler the opposition batsmen were expected to target. The 25-year-old legspinner, however, responded with a mature performance. His performance against Kings XI Punjab early on in the tournament was ample proof of his potential, as he beat the Kings XI batsmen with his spin. He fortified an already strong bowling attack with a decent economy rate and was a good foil to Mishra, the senior legspinner in the side. When given the chance, also contributed with the bat, scoring a stubborn unbeaten 39 when Sunrisers Hyderabad were staring at their first home defeat against Super Kings.Shahbaz Nadeem
One of the few bright spots in an otherwise forgettable campaign for Delhi Daredevils. Shahbaz Nadeem’s nine wickets in 12 matches defy the skill and heart he showed when bowling for Daredevils. Like Mohit, Nadeem, too, extended his domestic form into the IPL. In the 2012-13 Ranji season, he finished as the most successful spinner and the fourth-highest wicket-taker. The young left-arm spinner showed enough potential to lead a spin attack and was the most economical bowler in an otherwise feeble attack.Sanju Samson
In just his first season of the IPL, 18-year-old Kerala wicketkeeper garnered praise for his calm demeanour. His sure-footed 63 against Royal Challengers set up a close win for Royals and he showed the same quiet confidence against Kolkata Knight Riders and Kings XI. Against the bigger teams like Super Kings and Mumbai, and in crunch matches, Samson struggled to cope with the pressure. But he is still very young and can only improve, provided, of course, that he stays grounded.Honorable mentions
Hanuma Vihari
Two Man-of-the-Match awards for solid innings against Royal Challengers and Kings XI.Mandeep Singh
Showed promise in a brisk supporting act to David Miller against Pune Warriors.Dishant Yagnik
An audacious shot to mark some unorthodox innings. In the qualifier against Mumbai, he stood back in the crease, behind the stumps and whipped Lasith Malinga for four.Rishi Dhawan
A sharp catch in the field, good fast bowling and a scoop shot for four that took Mumbai closer to the final.Pravin TambeThe 41-year-old Pravin Tambe was noticed on his debut for being the one of the oldest players in the IPL. On the field, he had a decent run with the ball, too.
