IPL 2021: Virender Sehwag says the 24-year-old young fast bowler is someone ‘no one talks about’ and that he deserves a lot more credit for his bowling this season.
The IPL 2021 stands suspended but the 29 matches that were played witnessed some exhilarating performances with both bat and ball. With 380 runs from eight matches and 17 wickets from seven games, Shikhar Dhawan and Harshal Patel were holders of the Orange Cap and Purple Cap respectively, but there were those who were climbing up on the leading run-getter and wicket-taker lists rapidly.
In terms of the leading wicket-taker, behind Harshal of Royal Challengers Bangalore was a fast bowler representing the Delhi Capitals, whom former India batsman Virender Sehwag feels, is hardly talked about in the illustrious list of bowlers that the DC camp possesses. The DC bowling comprised some big names such as Kagiso Rabada, R Ashwin, Axar Patel and Amit Mishra, but in all this, the name of Avesh Khan goes missing.
“In this team, we talk about Rabada, Ashwin, Patel, Mishra… but no one talks about Avesh Khan. So, he is this season’s ‘under-the-radar’ player. He comes quietly, picks up 2-3 wickets and was [up there in race for Purple Cap, next only to Harshal Patel,” Sehwag said on Cricbuzz.
As 14 wickets from eight matches demonstrate, Avesh, 24, has picked up wickets in all DC matches of the season, twice picking up a three-wicket haul. Sehwag’s sentiments were shared by former Zimbabwe player Pommie Mbangwa, who feels Avesh deserves a lot more credit for the way he has bowled in all three stages of the innings.
“No doubt, it’s Avesh Khan. I don’t think there’s been too much said about him, or written about him. But he’s just gone about doing his job efficiently. He’s been effective at the front and at the end. He’s taken wickets in all three phases of the game and at the death too, he has been very good bowling nice lengths, changing his pace when needed to and bowling good yorkers at the back end too,” Mbangwa told Cricbuzz.
