5 Under-19 Players Who Could Become Future Stars

The under-19 cricket is seen as the breeding ground of the future stars of the game. Yuvraj Singh, Inzamam-ul-Haq, Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma are some of the big names who emerged from the u-19 level and achieved unparalleled success at the highest stage of the game.

The fact that the likes of Virat Kohli, Sarfraz Ahmed, and Kane Williamson – captains of three biggest of the biggest teams in the game –  learned the nuances and finer points of the sport at the u-19 level is a testament that the importance of this level of the game is of utmost importance.

Well, the fans look forward to seeing such stars in the Under-19 World Cup. And it is safe to say that this year’s tournament did not disappoint either. There were several youngsters who caught the eyes with their performances.

So here we are taking a look at five players who could make it big in the coming years:

5. Mujeeb Ur Rahman:

At just 17, Mujeeb is making all the right noises. He first grabbed the headlines during the 3-1 series win over Bangladesh Under-19s. He had picked up eight wickets in the first three games of that series and nearly doubled his tally in the fourth youth ODI. He picked up 7 for 19 as Afghanistan successfully defended 133.

Mujeeb had gone on to pick up 17 wickets in the series, the most by a bowler in a bilateral Youth ODI series.

Those performances helped him get a deal from Bangladesh Premier League outfit Comilla Victorians during the 2017-18 season. Mujeeb continued to enhance his reputation by starring in Afghanistan’s historic triumph at the Under-19 Asia Cup. In the final, he took a five-wicket haul against Pakistan. Prior to that, he had taken six wickets in the semifinal against Nepal. He finished the tournament with 20 wickets in five games.

At the Under-19 World Cup, his four-wicket haul helped Afghanistan beat New Zealand to secure a semi-final berth. A couple of days later, Kings XI Punjab bought him for an astonishing INR 4 crore for IPL 2018. He impressed in the IPL too, picking up 14 wickets. What was even more impressive that he conceded less than 7 runs per over.

4. Alick Athanaze:

Athanaze impressed one and all with his calm demeanour and the wide array of shots. He was undoubtedly a shade above all other West Indies batsmen and was one of the finest in this year’s World Cup. Not surprisingly, he finished the tournament as the highest run-scorer.

Athanaze scored 418 runs in six games at a mind-boggling average of over 104. In addition, he also scored two centuries and as many fifties.

3. Shaheen Afridi:

Shaheen is the latest product to be churned out of Pakistan’s fast-bowling factory and he’s shown he has all the tools to make it big at the senior level. Pace, accuracy, bounce – he has got it all that can make a batsman’s life tough. His 6 for 15 helped Pakistan blew Ireland away and eventually top the group.

The left-arm pacer finished the tournament with 12 wickets in 5 games. That he conceded less than 4 runs per over pretty much sums up how tough he was to face.

2. Shubman Gill:

Gill has impressed one and all with his impeccable stroke-play and temperament.   He shot to limelight in 2014. Back then he slammed 351 in Punjab’s Inter-District Under-16 tournament. On his Under-16 state debut for Punjab, he made an unbeaten double-century in the Vijay Merchant Trophy.

In the Under-19 World Cup, he slammed 372 runs at an average of 124. He too bagged a lucrative IPL deal as Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) bought him for INR 1.8 crore. In the IPL, he scored 203 runs including a match-winning fifty against eventual winners Chennai Super Kings (CSK).

1. Prithvi Shaw:

No current under-19 player is grabbing the headlines as much as Shaw. The right-handed batsman has been garnering attention for quite some time now.

Shaw shot to limelight when he set a new record of 546 runs from 330 balls playing for Rizvi Springfield in a Harris Shield match. It was the highest score in Indian schools cricket before being surpassed by Pranav Dhanawade in 2016.

The marathon knock, which lasted six hours and seven minutes, was studded with 85 fours and five sixes.

Shaw made his first-class debut for Mumbai in the semi-finals of the 2016–17 Ranji Trophy on 1 January 2017. And went on score a century in the second innings to bag the Man of the Match award. He also scored a century in his debut match of the Duleep Trophy. He equaled the record held by Sachin Tendulkar, who had scored for the first time a century each in his debut matches of Ranji Trophy and Duleep Trophy respectively.

In December 2017, he was named the captain of the team for the 2018 Under-19 Cricket World Cup. He eventually led the team to the title. He scored 261 runs in the tournament.

The impressive performances helped him get a whopping deal of INR 1.2 crore from Delhi Daredevils (DD). He went on to impress in the IPL too, finishing the season with 245 runs including two fifties.