IPL 2021: 5 Players Who Have The Perfect Opportunity To Shut Their Critics

The IPL can be the perfect opportunity for the youngsters as well as players who have not been in good form to get their rhythm back from the long tournament. The IPL has already allowed a lot of experienced veterans to make a comeback into the Indian side and has got their confidence back.

The selectors understand the importance of the tough and competitive league and are ready to give opportunities to the players that have performed well in the IPL. Considering that, here are five players who have the perfect opportunity to shut their critics.

5 Players Who Have The Perfect Opportunity To Shut Their Critics:

Suresh Raina:

One of the best T20 players in the world, Suresh Raina missed his first IPL last year in the 13 seasons and it did have a big impact on the Chennai Super Kings franchise. Raina opted out of the last IPL citing personal reasons and a lot of fans weren’t happy with his decision. To make things worse, he announced his retirement from the international game recently.

Raina has been a consistent performer for CSK over the years and this will be the perfect opportunity for him to shut the critics on him. He brings a lot of energy into the side and after CSK’s poor season in the last edition, Raina’s inclusion might be the need of the hour.

MS Dhoni:

MS Dhoni was criticized by the fans last year for his defensive gameplay in batting. Dhoni is renowned for taking the game deep and winning it from there. But it backfired on most occasions and led to the downfall of the team. Besides he did not have a great season with the bat either.

A lot of talks surrounded over if this would be the last IPL for Dhoni as CSK failed to qualify for the playoffs for the first time under MS Dhoni. But CSK has persisted with him for the upcoming edition and this will be the perfect opportunity for him to establish to his critics that he has still got the game in him.

KL Rahul:

KL Rahul had a tough patch of form in the recent five-match T20 series against England and was dropped for the last T20 game to accommodate an extra bowler. He was the orange cap holder in the last IPL edition and has been India’s best T20 batsmen in the last two years, however, his dismal show in the previous series was criticized.

Rahul was also criticized for his slow strike rate in the previous edition of the IPL and it has hampered the performances of the Punjab franchise. He can be very destructive at the start, but due to a lack of depth in the middle order, he had to stay in the crease for a long. This will be the perfect opportunity for him to improve his strike rate and get back in form for the Indian T20 side.

Shikhar Dhawan:

Shikhar Dhawan was unlucky to be dropped after getting just one chance in the first T20 against England. Ishan Kishan and Suryakumar Yadav were preferred ahead of him for the remaining T20s and the left-hander had to be benched. Dhawan was the second-highest run-scorer in the last IPL and he deserved an extended run.

Dhawan is also aging as a cricketer and India has been trying to look beyond him for an opener in the T20 format. But Dhawan has always come up with some excellent performances every time when he has been criticized and he will be looking to take that as a positive. The upcoming IPL will be a perfect opportunity for him to prove his critics wrong and make the cut into the T20 WorldCup squad.

Umesh Yadav:

Umesh Yadav has been a regular feature in the test cricket for India, but it has not been the case with limited-overs games and he has been on the expensive side. He is a wicket-taker and can provide the breakthroughs at the right times but tends to give plenty of runs. He bowls well with the new ball and is a handy option at the top.

Umesh has lost his place in the Indian limited-overs squad and it is time for him to improve his T20 numbers too. He can be used mainly in the powerplay as he bowls a good testing length and swings the ball. He will be representing the Delhi franchise this year and this will be the perfect opportunity for him to make a statement and get back into the Indian T20 squad.