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Bhuvi, Rana set eye on ‘mission’ as maiden UPTL opens today
One of the top run-getters of IPL and former UP captain, Suresh Raina says that the event gives an opportunity to Uttar Pradesh cricketers to showcase their skills to play for the state teams in the domestic circuit, in IPL and even for the country later
With Uttar Pradesh Cricket Association (UPCA) all set to have its own first-ever UPT20 League (UPTL) officially get underway at the Green Park Stadium in Kanpur on Wednesday, all eyes will be on Team India discard Bhuvneshwar Kumar and former Delhi team skipper Nitish Rana as the two have special missions to complete at this league.
While medium pacer Kumar, who last played for India in a T20I game against New Zealand in November 2022, would be looking for a comeback in Team India by excelling for Noida Super Kings, left-hand batter Rana, who has played for India in one ODI and 2 T20Is and scored 413 runs in 14 matches in this year’s IPL for Kolkata Knight Riders, would be aiming to win the trust of Uttar Pradesh people as everyone sees him as an ‘outsider’.
Both Kumar and Rana are also expected to be in the race to lead Uttar Pradesh in the upcoming domestic season this October when former champions begin their campaign in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Twenty20 Trophy.
“We have plenty of outsiders as regulars, including the current skipper Karan Sharma who also comes from Delhi, but for me Rana’s entry to the UP cricket just two days before the auction of the UPT20 League was something amazing as to why the UPCA bosses allowed him to play for Uttar Pradesh at the cost of one homegrown player,” asked one of the life members of UPCA on the condition of anonymity.
In his 105 IPL matches so far, Rana has scored 2,594 runs and has taken 10 wickets. “If Rana fails in UP T20 League, it would be a setback to those who conspired to bring him into the UP fold as we all are watching him,” he said.
UPCA bosses also feel that Kumar would be the right choice to lead Uttar Pradesh in the domestic matches this season as his experience of playing for Team India makes his case very strong. “Look at Kumar’s credentials, who has so far taken 792 wickets in all formats, including 141 in ODIs and 90 wickets in T20IS. I still believe that his leadership will make a big difference to the side at this domestic season,” a key UPCA functionary said.
As far as other big names of Uttar Pradesh cricket are concerned in the UPT20 League for all six franchises like Gorakhpur Lions, Kanpur Superstars, Kashi Rudras, Lucknow Falcons, Meerut Mavericks, and Noida Super Kings, players like Dhruv Chand Jurel, Mohsin Khan, Akshdeep Nath, Ankit Rajput, Karan Sharma, Shivam Mavi, Priyam Garg, Yash Dayal, Rinku Singh, Kartik Tyagi and Saurabh Kumar will also be watched keenly by the UP’s senior team coach and former India cricketer Sunil Joshi.
“Surely, the UPT20 League would help us identify a strong pool of performers ahead of the start of the Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 Trophy. It’s the best platform for the state cricketers to showcase their talents and draw the attention of the selectors so that they could be picked in the state side for the domestic matches,” said Joshi.
Former India cricketer and Uttar Pradesh’s skipper Suresh Raina too admires the UPT20 League as he finds it as the most suitable platform for cricketers, coaches etc to come good for future. “Look at the Tamil Nadu Premier League, which produced good domestic players who did well in the domestic circuit for the Karnataka side. This UPTL would also help state produce talented cricketers, coaches etc who could be stars for their teams in the domestic circuit and play in IPL as well as for India in future,” said Raina, who scored 5,528 runs in 205 IPL matches.
The 17-day extravaganza will see local outfits Kanpur Superstars taking on Noida Super Kings in the opening match on Wednesday at 7.30 p.m. The final is slated to be played on September 16. UPCA’s CEO, Ankit Chatterjee said that the winners of the event will be richer by the top purse of ₹1 crore.
