It’s been three weeks since the start of IPL 2021 and we are witnessing some great performances by players. The league is getting interesting day by day and we can’t wait to see who’ll be lifting up the trophy in the end. If we talk about the individual performances then some players have surprised us with their game and they have been breath-taking in IPL 2021.
There have been newcomers who came into the limelight. Meanwhile, there have been some players who we were expecting to perform and as a matter of fact, they did. There are numerous players who are playing great cricket in IPL 2021 but here are the top five players at halfway stage of the tournament.Â
Avesh Khan
Despite playing in previous seasons, Avesh Khan is finally enjoying a breakthrough campaign. He has been a regular starter for Delhi Capitals in IPL 2021. Last season we saw Kagiso Rabada and Anrich Nortje bowling so beautifully for Delhi, but this season, Avesh Khan has earned his place in the squad.
Khan was bought by Delhi in 2018 for Rs 75 lakhs. At that time, he was the leading wicket-taker in the 2018-19 Ranji Trophy with 35 wickets in seven matches. He was also selected as a net bowler for the test series against England in January 2021. IPL 2021 will further enhance his chances to break into the Indian team. He has clinched 14 wickets in 8 matches which is great for a 24-year-old young bowler and is currently 3 behind the purple cap holder Harshal Patel who’s taken 17 wickets. Along with taking wickets, Khan is also not giving scoring opportunities to batsmen, making him a lethal bowler for Delhi Capitals.
Faf Du PlessisÂ
Chennai Super Kings had a horror show in IPL 2020 as they finished seventh in the table. However, they are back with a bang in IPL 2021. The top performer for CSK right now is the South African batsman, Faf Du Plessis who’s been in form this season. Courtesy of his consistency, Chennai Super Kings has managed to win five of their seven games in the first half of IPL 2021.
The South African batsman has opened in all matches with Rituraj Gaikwad and has scored 320 runs for CSK this season. He is currently the 3rd highest scorer in this year’s tournament. The South African has a strike rate of 145.45 and has scored 50 or more than it in the last four games, including great innings against Kolkata Knight Riders in which he scored 95 runs. MS Dhoni will be hoping that Du Plessis will maintain this form for the rest of the season.Â
KL Rahul
The captain of Punjab Kings, KL Rahul has been one of the best T20 batsmen for India in the last couple of years. In IPL 2020, he proved his doubters wrong by scoring 670 runs in total. Though his team was poor last season as Punjab Kings finished sixth in the table, he has always been their star performer.
The history is repeating this season as they are still in the sixth position with eight matches played with three wins and five defeats. Even this season, KL has scored 331 with a strike rate of 136.21. He even scored 91 runs against Rajasthan Royals in Punjab’s first fixture of this season. Unfortunately, he was not able to play the last game against Delhi as he was hospitalized with acute appendicitis and surgery would resolve this problem. It’s a huge blow for Punjab as he is unlikely to play in the remaining games this season.
Harshal PatelÂ
Royal Challengers Bangalore were unbeaten in the first four games of IPL 2021 and they are currently third in the points table. They have won five of their seven games this season. But their main man this season has been a fast bowler, Harshal Patel. Patel has been the leading wicket-taker this season with 17 wickets in seven games which is impeccable.
It’s good to see a bowler shine in a team like Royal Challengers Bangalore since the team is known for the star trio of Virat Kohli, AB de Villiers, and Glen Maxwell. In January 2021, he was traded by Delhi Capitals to RCB and since then he has taken the IPL by storm as he took a five-wicket haul against Mumbai Indians in the first game of the season. Patel became the first player to achieve this feat against Mumbai in IPL history. The last couple of games have been poor for Patel, but he remains the go-to bowler for RCB in the death overs.
Shikhar Dhawan
All is well for Delhi Capitals as they are sitting comfortably on top of the table with 12 points and everything is going as planned for them. Shikhar Dhawan has played a key role in Delhi’s success this season. Dhawan has been the run machine for DC and formed a dominant opening partnership with Prithvi Shaw.
With 380 runs in eight matches, he’s the orange cap holder this season and he also has a strike rate of 134.27. Dhawan scored 85 runs in 54 balls against CSK in the opening fixture of IPL 2021 and but his best innings this season has come up against Punjab Kings where he scored 95 runs in 49 balls. Considering the rate at which he is scoring runs, Dhawan is likely to regain back his place in the starting XI of the Indian T-20 team.