The Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021 is here, and this time, it is being held in India with the first match on April 9 between defending champions Mumbai Indians and Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) in Chennai.
Here are the top players to watch out for in IPL 2021:
Ben Stokes
Stokes has made a habit out of turning contests in his side’s favour, the most recent example being the second India-England ODI, where he hammered 99 off 52 balls.
Glenn Maxwell
Australia’s batting all-rounder Glenn Maxwell has drawn a lot of attention during the IPL auction over the years. This time, the addition of Glenn Maxwell adds firepower to Royal Challengers Bangalore’s middle-order as they look to decrease the dependence on Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers to win this season.
Hardik Pandya
India’s best all-rounder at moment, Hardik Pandya is integral to India’s scheme of things heading into the T20I World Cup.
Andre Russell
A renowned name in franchise T20 leagues around the world, KKR’s Andre Russell is a force to reckon with in this format of the game.
Krunal Pandya
Krunal Pandya has been a huge asset for Mumbai Indians. The left-arm spinner has 46 IPL wickets to his name. If not among the wickets, he does the job for skipper Rohit Sharma by sneaking in tight overs.
Chris Morris
The highest-paid player in an IPL auction, Chris Morris shattered the past records when he joined Rajasthan Royals for Rs 16.25 crore this year. Morris has been part of RR in past and it will be his second stint with the one-time champions.
Moeen Ali
Moeen Ali has proven as a handy all-rounder for England across formats. He only played three matches for RCB last year, wherein he failed to make a noteworthy contribution. This year, he is in Chennai Super Kings.
Jason Holder
Jason Holder, an active cricketer for the West Indies across all formats, has the ability to extract extra bounce from the surface.
Shakib Al Hasan
This season for Shakib will be extremely crucial as he will be featuring in a tournament of such repute after a long time. He was bought by the franchise for Rs 3.20 crore for the upcoming edition.
Sam Curran
The England player is well-versed with the Indian conditions and he’ll be match ready right from the word go. He will represent Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in this season.