The ongoing IPL 2024 season has been nothing less than a grand show, with cricketing talents both young and seasoned coming to the fore, captivating fans and spectators alike. With the T20 World Cup looming on the horizon, IPL 2024 has served as more than just a stage for T20 cricket — players have used it as a testing ground to prove why they should be on their respective national teams. As we look at the key performers from IPL 2024, anticipation is high that these players will carry their cricketing form till the season concludes.
Travis Head
Country: Australia
IPL Squad: Sunrisers Hyderabad
Strengths: Travis Head is one of the top order batters for Hyderabad this season. His strength is that he is good against both spin and pace attacks. The Australian can emerge in the coming T20 World Cup and prove to be one of the country’s finest middle-order batsmen in limited-overs cricket.
IPL 2024 performance: This season, Head has been an important asset for SRH as the Australian has been in his finest form with the bat ahead of the T20 World Cup. He is the key batter because of whom SRH has been posting 250-plus scores this season. Even with the IPL still some distance to go before it ends, the 30-year-old has racked up 533 runs with an impressive strike rate of 201.89. He managed to score an incredible 102 runs off just 41 balls, which helped SRH achieve a formidable total of 287 for 3, making it the second-highest score ever recorded in T20 cricket. In the current season, Head has hit 61 boundaries and 31 sixes, making him one of the finest players to watch out for right now.
Virat Kohli
Country: India
IPL Squad: Royal Challengers Bengaluru
Strengths: Virat Kohli’s cover drives are not only his strength but also smooth like butter. You sit and listen to the bat striking the ball and shooting past the cover fielder to the boundary. The former Indian captain has been one of the finest batters, both in the T20 and ODI formats. His footwork when facing fast bowlers is impeccable, allowing him to position himself flawlessly for each delivery. Kohli has earned notable recognition for his ability to perform under pressure. He excels in moments where the fate of the game is uncertain.
IPL 2024 performance: With 634 runs in 12 games, Kohli currently holds the orange cap in IPL 2024. He has been performing consistently in the current IPL and will, hopefully, carry his form from the ODI World Cup to the upcoming T20 World Cup. Whenever RCB struggled, he is the man who stood up to the bowling. This batter has an average of 70.44 in this edition of IPL. Virat’s incredible composure and mental resilience establish him as a true master of high-pressure cricket.
Andre Russell
Country: West Indies
IPL Squad: Kolkata Knight Riders
Strengths: Andre Russell is one of the most sought-after IPL players. He has been KKR’s go-to player in run chases and when trying to post a high total on the board. The Caribbean player plays spin well and tries hitting big shots against the spinners. He is a player who stands and delivers and is no doubt the trump card of KKR this season as well.
IPL 2024 performance: Russell in the current IPL has fared well, maybe not the best with the bat but has compensated it with his stellar bowling. He took some important wickets for KKR and has already bagged 13 wickets while also scoring 198 runs with a strike rate of 186.79. Often, when KKR has struggled to break the partnerships, this man has come in and got wickets and helped the men in purple to get to their current top spot in the points table.
Jasprit Bumrah
Country: India
IPL Squad: Mumbai Indians
Strengths: Jasprit Bumrah’s strength lies in his ability to read opponents and he is surely one of the finest bowlers in India in the T20 format. Bumrah’s yorkers are hard to tackle and it makes it difficult for batters to play big shots against his bowling. He made a smooth transition from white-ball to red-ball cricket. It has always been difficult for all Indian Premier League batsmen to face him.
IPL 2024 performance: While Mumbai Indians did not actually get a good start in the 2024 IPL and are out of the tournament now, that didn’t stop Bumrah from taking wickets. The Indian bowler is second in the race for the purple cap this season with 18 wickets with an amazing economy rate of a meagre 6.20. He was the crucial X-factor for the Mumbai Indians when it came to taking wickets and this season, too, the pacer performed in his prime form despite the team struggling to notch up wins.
Phil Salt
Country: England
IPL Squad: Kolkata Knight Riders
Strengths: With 30 international appearances under his belt, the England batsman is well-versed in the T20 format, having amassed over 4,000 runs from 180 matches. Being one of KKR’s main hitters this season, his bat is going well for the team.
IPL 2024 performance: From coming as a replacement to being one of the best openers alongside Narine, Salt this season has come a long way. With his aggressive batting, Salt has given KKR positive starts in every game, which has helped KKR to put up 200+ scores and also chase 200 runs quite effortlessly. Phil Salt this season has scored 429 runs with a strike rate of 183.33.
Rishabh Pant
Country: India
IPL Squad: Delhi Capitals
Strengths: The wicketkeeper-batsman was one of the players Delhi kept and relied on after he was named the skipper ahead of IPL 2021. Pant is one of the finest batsmen in the current Indian cricket roster and has responsibly handled all his responsibilities quite well even after coming from long lead injury. The batsman plays with fine cricketing shots in the middle order and helps his team to both chase and put up good scores on the board.
IPL 2024 performance: The Delhi Capitals skipper is performing admirably in the current season and already has 413 runs against his name. His highest score this season is 88 with a batting average of 41.30 runs. Pant coming in to bat in the middle-order has helped Delhi to stay stable while chasing higher totals. The Indian batsman is confident and likes to play freely on the leg side and is definitely a game-changer for his team in this edition of IPL.
Sunil Narine
Country: West Indies
IPL Squad: Kolkata Knight Riders
Strengths: This player is a master of T20 cricket, particularly when it comes to bowling. He has a wide range of deliveries in his repertoire including the knuckleball and the carrom ball. But that’s not all. He also has a special talent for scoring quick runs with the bat and all of that has been on display in this current season.
IPL 2024 performance: Sunil Narine has been one of the most consistent players for KKR this season. Fans look up to him when he arrives to bat alongside Phil Salt as the two of them have created really notable opening partnerships this season. The West Indies all-rounder has already scored 461 runs in just 11 innings with a strike rate of 183.67 at an average of 41.91 runs. The 35-year-old Trinidadian has also scored his maiden century this season against Rajasthan Royals at the Eden Gardens. This IPL, Narine has been that key player for KKR both with the bat and the ball and has also bagged 14 wickets with an economy of 6.61 and is slowly getting ahead in the race of the top wicket takers. It will be interesting to see whether by the end of this IPL season he gets to wear the orange cap or the purple cap!
Ruturaj Gaikwad
Country: India
IPL Squad: Chennai Super Kings
Strengths: Ruturaj Gaikwad has the ability to play solid, risk-free cricket when it comes to the T20 format. He can play good shots over the covers and on the leg side and has proved his worth this season with CSK as he has been a successful opener for his team. Gaikwad is a free-stroking batter who shows little sign of pressure even in tough situations.
IPL 2024 performance: The CSK opener is just behind Virat Kohli in the race for the orange cap. Having scored 541 runs from 12 matches at a strike rate of 145.82 so far this season, he has also been the highest scorer for CSK. At 54.10, his average, expectedly, is also one of the best this season
Harshal Patel
Country: India
IPL Squad: Punjab Kings
Strengths: With 32 wickets in the 2021 IPL season, Harshal Patel took home the Purple Cap. The perfect pace in his ball makes it difficult for the batters to hit him. Patel has been a consistent bowler in the IPL and has never gone unsold.
IPL 2024 performance: The Indian pacer is just overtaken Bumrah and is leading the race for the purple cap. Harshal has already taken 20 wickets donning the Punjab jersey this season in 12 matches with an economy rate of just 9.75. He has been a constant force in the bowling lineup for Punjab this season, be it in the powerplay or in the death overs. Patel has taken some important wickets which have turned matches in Punjab’s favour and is hungry for more.
Riyan Parag
Country: India
IPL Squad: Rajasthan Royals
Strengths: Riyan Parag has been phenomenal with the bat this season for RR. He has proved his worth whenever RR seemed to be struggling. His focus while batting is notably impressive and as a young batsman he plays with immense presence and calmness by judging each ball and then playing shots.
IPL 2024 performance: Parag was a part of India’s 2018 U19 World Cup-winning squad, and thus was bought by Rajasthan Royals with a lot of hope and the youngster till now has done his job pretty well in terms of batting. The 22-year-old batter has already scored 436 with an average of 54.50 runs. He has been in prime form this season for RR and hopefully will better his batting skills even more, playing alongside experienced players during his stint with Rajasthan Royals.