IPL Auction 2024: Who Is Kumar Kushagra? Jharkhand Lad Who Took Home Rs 7.2 Crores
New Delhi: The Indian Premier League 2024 auction saw the Delhi Capitals (DC) franchise showing faith when they bought Jharkhand’s young wicketkeeper, Kumar Kushagra, for Rs. 7.20 crore.
Kushagra entered with a base price of Rs. 20 lakh, and then there was a bidding war between Chennai Super Kings (CSK) and DC. When CSK opted out, Gujarat Titans (GT) entered the bidding war, and then DC bought the young lad for 7.20 crore. The right-handed batter was a part of India’s Under-19 World Cup squad in 2020.
The 19-year-old young star was the sixth-highest run-getter in the Deodhar Trophy earlier this year. The Jharkhand-born cricketer amassed 227 runs in just five innings with a strike rate of 109.13. He smashed a crucial fifty for the East Zone in the final defeat against the South Zone.
Talented keeper who hits the ball hard. It’s a DC thing #YehHaiNayiDilli #IPLAuction pic.twitter.com/jZBRNjurEI
— Delhi Capitals (@DelhiCapitals) December 19, 2023
The young lad once again proved his mettle when he smashed 67 runs in just 37 balls while chasing a 355-run target against Maharashtra in the Vijay Hazare Trophy.
In 2022, the U-19 wicketkeeper batter, who was just 17 years old at the time, once again came into the limelight, where he smashed a double century against Nagaland in the pre-quarterfinal match of the Ranji Trophy. In the very same match, he also became the sixth-youngest player to smash 200 or more in a first-class inning.
Hailing from Bokaro, Jharkhand, Kumar Kushagra, born in 2004, is a rising star in the Indian cricket firmament. A young prodigy who started playing at a tender age, Kushagra initially wielded the willow as an opener before seamlessly transitioning to the middle order in domestic cricket.
Kushagra’s elegant stroke-making and composure at the crease are captivating. He possesses a diverse arsenal of shots, including graceful drives, cuts, and pulls, and can effortlessly switch between building innings and accelerating the run rate when needed. He’s adept behind the stumps as well, keeping well to both pace and spin while taking sharp catches.
This versatility and growing prowess have not gone unnoticed. Kushagra is already attracting interest from Indian Premier League franchises and is being touted as a potential long-term successor to the legendary MS Dhoni as India’s wicket-keeper batsman.