Akash Madhwal: Star Mumbai Indians Pacer
Akash Madhwal is a 29-year-old pacemaker who proved his worth in the Indian Premier League 2023 Eliminator 1. He gave a legendary performance against the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG), claiming a figure of 5/5 in 3.3 overs with an economy of 1.42 runs. His haul included Prerak Mankad (3), Ayush Badoni (1), Nicholas Pooran (0), Ravi Bishnoi (3) and Mohsin Khan (0). His bowling performance is the best ever seen in an IPL playoff and helped secure Mumbai Indians a ride to the second qualifier with an 81-run win.
Hailing from Dhandera in Roorkee, Uttrakhand, Akash Madhwal first started playing tennis ball cricket as the state was not playing in the Ranji tournament. It was only after 2019 when he was trying out for Uttarakhand’s state team that he began playing red ball cricket. He is the first IPL player from Uttarakhand’s state team and also the skipper for the state’s white ball outfit.
Akash Madhwal originally entered the IPL under the Royal Challengers Bangalore camp in 2021. However, a disappointing season saw him being let go by the outfit in the 2022 season where he went unsold during the auction as well. However, in the middle of the season, he was called up as a replacement for Suryakumar Yadav by Mumbai Indians after the swashbuckling batter had sustained an injury. He was picked up by Mumbai Indians in IPL 2023 auction and has so far played 7 matches, taking 13 wickets.
Not many would know that Madhwal used to play tennis ball cricket until just four years ago. Interestingly, Akash Madhwal was coached under Avtar Singh, who was also Rishabh Pant’s coach before Pant’s move to Delhi. In addition, he has played a total of 10 FC and 17 List-A matches in his career. He has played in 29 T20 matches so far and picked up 37 wickets with an economy of 7.51.
Akash Madhwal’s performance in the IPL 2023 Eliminator proves that he is a rising star in the cricket world.
