While plenty of superstars such as Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma have underwhelmed in season 15 of the Indian Premier League, there have also been some hugely exciting prospects that have made a major leap this campaign. We have seen plenty of cricketers develop their games and make a stellar jump in performance and output in 2022, and here are our top five most improved players in the Indian Premier League this season.
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After three disappointing seasons with the Sunrisers Hyderabad since being involved in the Shikhar Dhawan trade package, Abhishek Sharma finally realised his potential with the bat in IPL 2022. Having been trusted to open the innings for Hyderabad, Sharma repaid the management’s faith, scoring 383 runs in 13 matches at a healthy strike rate of 132. The left-hander was the only batter in the entire IPL who scored at more than 12 runs an over against Rashid Khan and Sunil Narine, and his numbers are even more impressive considering he was under pressure to score quickly all the time due to his partner Kane Williamson’s struggles this season.
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After bouncing around the league for the past seven seasons, Deepak Hooda finally landed a consistent role with the Lucknow Super Giants in IPL 2022 and has enjoyed a career year with the bat. Hooda has nearly tripled his best run-tally in an IPL season this year, scoring 406 runs at an average of 31 and a strike rate of 133. Hooda has also hit more half-centuries this campaign than his previous seven seasons combined in the IPL and has been equally destructive against pace and spin.
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Liam Livingstone was never able to show his true potential as an all-rounder in the IPL with the Rajasthan Royals in 2019 and 2021, but the Englishman finally announced his arrival in the competition this season with the Punjab Kings. Livingstone has scored an astonishing 388 runs this season at a strike rate of 177, the third-highest behind Dinesh Karthik and Andre Russell amongst those who have batted at least 100 deliveries. The Englishman is averaging an absurd 7.5 balls per six this season in the IPL and has also chipped in with a few handy wickets with the ball, picking up six scalps for the Kings at a strike rate of 19.
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At number two is another Sunrisers Hyderabad batter, Rahul Tripathi, who has taken his game to another level in 2022 for the Sunrisers Hyderabad. Despite batting at number three and facing fewer balls in the powerplay, Tripathi has improved his strike rate from 140 to 161 compared to last season while also increasing his average by 11 points. Tripathi has single-handedly helped SRH win games against KKR and MI with his ball-striking and has also shown incredible improvements in terms of his hitting range against spin through the middle overs.
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And finally, at number one in our list of most improved players for IPL 2022 is the SRH speedster, Umran Malik. Malik showed he had the raw tools and speed to succeed at the highest level in IPL 2021, but the 22-year-old was still very erratic in terms of his lines and lengths in the UAE. However, in 2022, the fast-bowler has polished his game massively, displaying incredible control and accuracy to complement his extraordinary pace. The fruits of his improvements are in the numbers, with Malik picking up 21 wickets in IPL 2022, the second most amongst all pacers in the competition after Kagiso Rabada, while also bowling the fifth most dot balls in the tournament.
[Featured Image Credit: IPL – Indian Premier League]
Shivaan Shah