Shreyas Gopal - India - Bowler

A technically sound batsman with the ability of bowl leg spin, little did Shreyas Gopal know that his secondary skill would end up tipping his main ability. Having debuted in the 2013-14 Ranji season, Gopal showed promise in his batting skills but it was his crafty wrist spin that won the accolades from all over. He had a fruitful season with the ball and the contributions had a significant bearing on Karnataka winning the title. Since then, there hasn't been any looking back for the young man who has shouldered a big burden of the spin duties. Blessed with the ability to extract prodigious turn, his multiple skills make him a fine product to have, especially in white-ball cricket.

Gopal's heroics in the 2013-14 Ranji season saw him getting an IPL contract with the Mumbai Indians but barely played any games for the franchise before moving to the Rajasthan Royals after the 2018 auctions. Gopal has modelled his action on the legendary Anil Kumble although the veteran must be proud of the revs that Gopal imparts on the ball, thereby getting it to spin considerably. There is no denying his skill levels but it's about taking his career to the next level for a national call up to happen. Only time will tell if he can make that happen or not.

IPL through the years

Shreyas Gopal’s consistent all-round performances in the domestic circuit saw him earning a contract with the Mumbai Indians in 2014. However, he barely got any opportunities in his stint at the MI franchise and subsequently got picked up by Rajasthan Royals at the fresh auctions in 2018. That season was the first time that Gopal got lengthy game time in the IPL and the Karnataka lad impressed with his leg spin, scalping wickets without giving much away. He was particularly employed by RR for their home games at Jaipur which were conducive to spin bowling. Gopal’s finest performance came in the virtual knockout game against Royal Challengers Bangalore where he landed a 4-fer to push RR into the playoffs. Gopal's googly has troubled the best of batsmen in the IPL, including Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers.

By Hariprasad Sadanandan