The upcoming ICC T20 World Cup 2021 is set to begin on October 17 in Oman and UAE. All the teams have announced the squad for T20 World Cup with few surprising omissions and few unexpected call-ups. The shortest format of the game is all about game changers and X-factor players and rightly, the top teams like India, England and New Zealand have got with such players.
Usually, the game-changers hog the majority of the limelight due to their impact in winning games singlehandedly. They are also given a longer rope in the team. For example, Australia have persisted with Glenn Maxwell even though he has not performed on a consistent basis.
Cricket is also a glorious game and uncertainties and also about surprise packages. We have seen few instances where a certain unknown player playing performance of ages to get the team over the line. Fans and experts are still ‘Remembering’ Carlos Braithwaite’s assault on Ben Stokes in the T20 World Cup 2016.
Here are few players who can turn out to surprise packages during the global event
1. Hayden Walsh
Australia batters faced some trouble facing West Indian leg-spinner Hayden Walsh during their recent limited-overs series. Walsh picked seven wickets in the three ODI matches and 12 in the five T20I matches. After that breakthrough performance, it was hard for West Indies selectors to ignore him for the upcoming T20 World Cup.
Leg-spinners are usually considered an asset in the team due to their remarkable ability to get breakthroughs, whenever the captain wants. Walsh was used smartly by skipper Keiron Pollard during that particular series against Australia. West Indies have boldly gone with one specialist spinner in the form of Walsh. Roston Chase can provide the team with a few of his off-spin. Generally, West Indies don’t rely on spinners to win games in any format. With Walsh in it, things might slowly begin to change.
2. Keshav Maharaj
Keshav Maharaj in an ideal world would not have been on this list as he is considered a red-ball specialist. An untimely injury to Temba Bavuma during the team’s recently-concluded limited-overs series against Sri Lanka changed things for off-spinner Maharaj. Not only he led the team to a 3-0 T20I series win but he has solidified his reputation as a white-ball player. In the three T20Is, Maharaj took three wickets at an impressive economy rate of 4.22 runs per over.
It was hard to believe that it was his debut for South Africa in the T20I format. Interestingly, apart from Maharaj, the team has Tabraiz Shamsi, Bjorn Fortuin and George Linde in the squad as the other spinners. With an impressive performance in his debut T20I series, the off-spinner should slot in the team alongside Tabraiz Shamsi for the T20 World Cup matches. Maharaj would be a perfect foil to Shamsi during the crucial middle stages during the T20 World Cup matches.
3. Devon Conway
Life has moved at a rapid pace for New Zealand opener Devon Conway. The southpaw had to make the hard decision of leaving South Africa and pursue his cricketing dream in New Zealand. After a stupendous domestic season, the selectors finally relented and included him in the T20I series against West Indies.
Since then, the dashing southpaw has gone to play 14 games, scoring 473 runs at an incredible average of 59.12. Conway’s rapid success in such a short period has also kept a certain Colin Munro out of the team. Before the World Test Championship (WTC) Final against India, Scott Styris was asked to pick his top-performer for the summit final.
The former New Zealand all-rounder took Conway’s name instead of the usual suspects Kane Williamson and Trent Boult. Surely, Conway can do no wrong at the moment due to his sublime form.
4. Varun Chakravarthy
It was a forgone conclusion that the BCCI selectors will include Varun Chakravarthy in the 15-member squad for the T20 World Cup due to his mystery element. The leg spinner made quite a few heads turn during his stint in Tamil Nadu Premier League (TNPL). His smart variations coupled with an unorthodox bowling action were hard to pick by the opposition teams.
The IPL franchises were impressed by the first look of the mystery spinner and soon he was handed an IPL contract by Punjab Kings (PBKS). Opportunities though came at a snail’s pace during his time with the team in 2017-18. Things changed during his time with KKR, as he got to play more games. It was the consistency in taking wickets for KKR coupled with the mystery element, which made the selectors pick up him in the squad during the global event.
He also got make his international debut during the three-match T20I series against Sri Lanka, where he picked 2 wickets. There is still a mystery element attached to Chakravarthy, and that will keep the teams guessing as to what to expect from him.
5. Chamika Karunaratne
Cricket is all about numbers, statistics, and impact players and their contribution to winning causes for the team. Sri Lanka all-rounder Chamika Karunaratne’s numbers are not jaw-dropping, but he has managed to be in the team for the T20 WOrld Cup. In the six T20Is that he has played, he has scored 69 runs off 55 balls.
He got to make his T20I debut against India and has featured in all three games, in which his side won 2-1. While leg-spinner Wanindu Hasaranga was the star for the team, Karunaratne too was effective in playing those handy knocks lower down the order. With Sri Lanka set to play the Qualifiers of the T20 World Cup, Karunaratne would be hoping to be the ‘effective’ player for the team.
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