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Anshul Kamboj (Source: X)
In place of Gerald Coetzee, Mumbai Indians' (MI) debutant Anshul Kamboj finally got a chance to play in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024. From being a part of the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) camp in the 2023 season to playing the IPL, the 23-year-old player came a long way. However, after bowling a brilliant first over against the Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH), Kamboj was super excited to claim his maiden IPL wicket.
Nevertheless, his excitement was hindered by a no-ball, which he bowled to SRH's star batter, Travis Head. Well, this wasn't the only heartbreak he received during the match. In the next over, MI's bowler Nuwan Thushara dropped the catch of Travis Head again, depriving the bowler of the joy of dismissing the batter. Later on, however, he somehow managed to get his maiden wicket after dismissing Mayank Agarwal on just five runs.
Once again, the SRH batters were forced to bat first on losing the toss but went on to strike hard from the very first over. But Abhishek Sharma was dismissed early by Jasprit Bumrah on 11 runs, and then Travis Head was dismissed by Piyush Chawla on 48 runs. This is another match where both openers scored under a strike rate of 200, which is a rare occurrence these days.
Who is Anshul Kamboj?
Coming from Karnal in Haryana, Anshul Kamboj is a 23-year-old bowler who dreamt of playing in the Indian Premier League. In his career so far, Anshul has played only nine T20 matches, in which he has had 11 wickets at an economy rate of 6.91. Moreover, in 13 first-class matches, he has 24 wickets and 284 runs. Apart from this, in List-A cricket, he has taken 23 wickets in 15 matches. However, the young star came to the limelight during the 2023–24 Vijay Hazare Trophy with a brilliant performance in 10 matches.
During the matches, he took around 17 wickets and surprised the selectors with his perfect line and length. He has been a part of the India U-19 team in two Youth Test matches against South Africa in 2019. Anshul's current bowling speaks volumes about why skipper Hardik Pandya handed him the new ball during the match. If he manages to learn from his mistakes and improvise them from the next game, he can definitely be the next star bowler of India.