Rishabh Pant
Delhi Daredevils
The wicketkeeper batsman from Delhi is being talked about as a potential replacement for M.S Dhoni in India’s limited-overs squads. Pant is not a newbie in the IPL though – he was a regular member of the squad last season too.
With 366 runs in 14 games at a strike rate of 165 runs per 100 balls, he finished the second-highest run-scorer for the franchise this season. He is one of the hardest hitters of the ball, and by the end of the Delhi’s season, he had hit 24 sixes. His most destructive knock was the 97 against Gujarat Lions.
A century was his for the taking but a rash shot ended his innings, one that won the respect of opposing captain Suresh Raina. Pant also showed remarkable composure and strength of mind by committing to his team just days after he lost his father.
Nitish Rana
Mumbai Indians
Another attacking left-handed batsman from Delhi, though he represented Mumbai Indians. Rana was bought by Mumbai Indians for Rs. 10 lakh before the 2015 IPL, but he never got a game that season.
Mumbai gave him his due this season and he responded with 333 runs in 13 games at a strike rate of 126. Rana made everyone sit up and notice early in the tournament with 50 off 29 balls, helping Mumbai pull off a heist against Kolkata Knight Riders.
Rana later led the decimation of Kings XI Punjab in a chase of 199, finishing with an unbeaten 62. He scored 42 of those runs in sixes alone.
In an online readers’ poll conducted by The Hindu midway through the tournament ahead of the India’s squad selection for the Champions Trophy, Rana and Pant were the favourites when asked to pick rookie players. In the end, the selectors chose to overlook IPL performances, but Rana is certainly one to look out for.
Washington Sundar
Rising Pune Supergiant
The offspinner from Chennai appears more mature, temperamentally, than his 17 years. Washington’s tournament numbers may not appear that spectacular – 8 wickets from 11 games – but what stood out was his discipline, as his economy rate of 6.16 shows.
His captain Steven Smith was confident enough to trust him with the new ball and bowl him during the Powerplay overs. Washington saved his best performance for the first Playoff match against Mumbai Indians, finishing with 3 for 16. All three were top-order wickets. Mumbai could never recover in their chase.
He was rewarded for “keeping things simple” but in a recent interview he revealed that he is working on perfecting the carrom ball, much like his senior from the Tamil Nadu squad, R Ashwin.
Rahul Tripathi
Rising Pune Supergiant
The only Pune-bred player in the RPS squad, the right-handed batsman was playing his first IPL season. He was promoted to open the batting and the move worked as he churned out six consecutive scores of over 30. He was always setting himself up for something big, but the fifty seemed to elude him.
Against Knight Riders at Eden Gardens, Tripathi went on a six-hitting spree, smashing seven of them. Three of them came off consecutive deliveries off the left-arm chinaman bowler Kuldeep Yadav. He ended with 93 and he finally showed his true potential. His innings put Pune on course to their sixth win in seven games.
He was the second-highest scorer for RPS with 391 runs in 14 games at a strike rate of 146.
Basil Thampi
Gujarat Lions
The fast bowler from Kerala impressed with his pace. Thampi was bought by the franchise for Rs 10 lakh and it proved a good bargain as he finished with 11 wickets in 12 games. His best figures were 3 for 29 against eventual champions Mumbai Indians in a tied match. He has impressed in the death overs and overall, he performed well enough to impress the IPL jury to take home the Emerging Player Award for the season.