Ravi Bishnoi – A star in the making
India’s young talent Ravi Bishnoi is impressing the greats of the game of cricket by his bowling in the 13th edition of the Indian Premier League, that is being played in UAE across three venues namely Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Sharjah. The young gun is a part of Kings XI Punjab (KXIP) contingent and has been a vital feature of the team’s playing XI since the very beginning of the tournament. Ravi Bishnoi had aced his first IPL match and showed the world he is here to stay by taking the crucial wicket of power-hitter Rishabh Pant in a match against Delhi Capitals (DC).
The painful journey
However, Bishnoi’s journey hasn’t been easy. He had to deal with a lot of disappointment and rejection before making a dream IPL debut. During his early days, Ravi was sent back home from every trial. He was rejected once at Under-16 trials and twice at Under-19 trials, that left the spinner disheartened. But under the guidance of his two mentors, Pradyot Singh and Shahrukh Pathan, Ravi worked harder and got selected as the net bowler of Rajasthan Royals for IPL 2019. His expertise in the spin department during the net sessions of RR impressed many and he was finally selected for the Under-19 team.
Impressive performance in U19 WC
Though India failed to lift the ICC U-19 World Cup for the record fifth time, leg spinner Ravi Bishnoi had a tournament to remember. In the tournament, Ravi picked up 17 wickets from just 6 games and finished as the top wicket-taker. He was even described as a ‘wizard’ by former cricketer Ian Bishop.
Bishnoi gave a glimpse of his expertise in leg-spin bowling for the first time in the World Cup during a league match against Japan. He bowled the most economical spell of the competition, taking four wickets for mere five runs. This was followed by a blistering spell against the Kiwis where he again stunned everybody after taking four wickets.
His vicious googlies and unorthodox bowling helped him maintain an economy of 3.48 throughout the competition. The leggie proved to be a difficult bowler to score runs against. He also registered himself as the only Indian player to win two Player of the Match awards during the tournament.
The 20-year-old had once again shown his class in the final of the U-19 World Cup against Bangladesh. Bowling a sensational spell, he doomed the Bangladesh batters as he took four important wickets of Tanzid, Mahmudul Hasan Joy, Towhid Hridoy and Shahadat Hossain stumped. He gave away only 30 runs in his ten overs.
Impressive IPL 2020 so far
Before participating in the U-19 World Cup at South Africa, Bishnoi was brimming with confidence as he was picked by Kings XI Punjab in December 2019 auctions for IPL 2020 for a staggering amount of Rs. 2 crores. The leg-spinner has successfully made a mark in World’s biggest T20 league by four wickets he five matches at an economy of 7.9 and average of 39.5. He will also be hoping to perform consistently in the future and finally make it to the senior Indian team soon.
