In December 2025, when the IPL auctions were going on, Prafulla Hinge, a religious person, was in a temple. There he came to know that he had been bought by SRH for Rs 30 lakh. In 2023, Hinge suffered a serious back injury and many people thought that he would never recover from it. But after continuous hard work, he finally took the field with the ball in his hand for SRH. Before him, one of the big success stories of IPL was Vaibhav Suryavanshi. But Hinge did not succumb to the pressure. He believed in himself and was writing his own destiny. He did just that by taking three wickets in the very first spell. Mukul Chaudhary also did the same. LSG were clearly under pressure after losing 7 wickets for 130 against KKR at Eden Gardens. Then Mukul Chaudhary decided to play openly. Very few people had heard his name before IPL. Yes, based on his performance in domestic cricket, it was definitely discussed that this young player hits the ball hard. But playing in a local format away from the limelight and playing in the IPL: there is the same difference between playing for a second division club and playing in the Champions League. With crores of spectators and crores of rupees invested, IPL can be called the ‘Mother of All Spectacles’. And Chaudhary was the central character on the stage of Eden Gardens. This is not just about Prafulla or Mukul. From Sameer Rizvi to Priyansh Arya and Saqib Hussain – these new faces are the real identity of IPL. Each of these names is a story in itself. Take Saqib Hussain only. In the dusty plains of Gopalganj and Siwan in Bihar, he was not called by his real name. To the locals who gathered to watch tennis-ball cricket on makeshift pitches, the tall and lanky teenager who bowled the ball at high speed was simply known as ‘Rabada’. From ‘Rabada’ of Gopalganj to trending on social media, it has been a long journey for this young man. Vaibhav Suryavanshi and Priyansh Arya are great examples of what the IPL does to players. None of them come under pressure from the reputation of the front bowler. They are not playing the bowler, they are only playing the ball. If Vaibhav had thought that he was facing Bumrah or Hazlewood, he would never have been able to play the shots that he did. But he was just concentrating on the ball. He was writing his own destiny and in doing so, leading the team to victory. Unhesitating and carefree, fearless and positive: These batsmen do not appear under pressure at any moment. If the ball is in their range, they will hit it. It’s this fresh approach that makes the IPL what it is – a hotbed of young talent, where stars are born and careers are made. By coming to IPL, these young boys mature and prepare themselves for the big stage. None of the players named above are going to come under pressure. Even if they fail – as happened with Vaibhav, Shakib, Prafulla and Mukul in the previous matches. But they know there is always a second chance. This is the identity of the new generation Indian stars, who have made their place in the public mind overnight thanks to IPL. With teams representing every corner of the country, this tournament also becomes all-inclusive in nature. Today it is very difficult for a youth to make a place in the Indian team, but making a way in the ten-team IPL is much easier than this. As soon as you perform well, you are seen by millions of people on television and digital mediums and become an overnight star. In such a situation, we have every reason to believe that players like Vaibhav Suryavanshi can also make a place in the national team for the upcoming tours of Ireland and UK. In a sense, IPL is the country’s biggest talent hunt, which runs for two months every year, fulfilling dreams and nurturing ambitions. This also makes clear to us the reason for its subsequent success. In its 19th season, it’s poised to get even bigger and better. And in doing so, it will give us many more young stars to celebrate. Carefree and carefree, fearless and positive: these players never appear under pressure. It’s this refreshing approach that makes the IPL what it is – a hub for young talent, where stars are born and careers are made. (These are the author’s own views)
Source link
Boria Majumdar’s column: IPL has become cricket’s biggest talent hunt
