It took only a couple of months for India and Chennai Super Kings all-rounder Deepak Chahar to make his international debut after being handed consistent opportunities in an Indian Premier League season. Ideal or not, but performances in the IPL have helped many Indian players realize their dream of playing for their country over the years.
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One of the other most widely discussed merits of IPL has been that by rubbing shoulders against the best of cricketers from around the world, players are cooked enough to treat their maiden international match as yet another high-profile fixture without many butterflies in their stomach.
Chahar did try to drive this very point home by stating that the audacious approach with which batters like Ishan Kishan and Suryakumar Yadav kick-started their respective international careers was possible because of their ample experience playing in the IPL.
Deepak Chahar Remarks Why Suryakumar Yadav and Ishan Kishan Became an Instant Hit in International Cricket
During an interaction with Gaurav Kapur via his popular chat show Breakfast with Champions, Chahar remarked that the reason players like Yadav and Kishan have the fearlessness and confidence to smash a boundary on the first ball they face in international cricket is because of their previous IPL experience.
The 30-year-old stated that no other platform, but the IPL, had earlier provided an opportunity to uncapped players to play in front of 40,000-odd spectators. Thus, the nervousness and performance pressure after suddenly facing a never-seen-before massive crowd during an international match is not much of a factor for a player.
Moreover, Chahar reckons that the cash-rich league has also made sure that the players need not worry about the financial job security which a BCCI contract brings with it. An IPL contract helps them make enough already.
“IPL ne jo Indian players ko diya hai, woh bahut kuch hai. Ek to platform-wise bhi, 40,000-50,000 logon ke saamne khel rahe ho, woh pressure. Woh har aadmi pressure handle nahi kar sakta. Jo aaj IPL khel raha hai, vahi pressure Indian team mein hai aur idhar hai. Vahan ulta aap zyada motivate ho kar khelte ho. Aur aapko paise ki bhi tension nahi hai. Isiliye aaj Ishan Kishan aur Suryakumar Yadav jaise players international cricket mein pehli ball par chakka maar sakte hain. Pehle kisi me dam nahi tha ki pehli ball pe chakka maarne ka soch bhi le [The IPL has provided a lot to the Indian players. Platform-wise, not everyone has it in them to play in front of 40,000-50,000 people. The crowd pressure is the same in the IPL, and while playing for India. You don’t have to worry about the monetory part as well. This is the very reason why players like Ishan Kishan and Suryakumar Yadav have the audacity to hit their first ball in international cricket for a six. Earlier, nobody could even think of smashing a six on the first ball of the debut match for their country.]”
Suryakumar Yadav and Ishan Kishan’s Performance on Their International Debut
Suryakumar made his international and T20I debut in March 2021 against England in Ahmedabad. He delivered a match-winning performance right-away with a half-century helping India win the match by 8 runs.
However, the talking point of his performance was the scoop over fine leg fence for a six off the first ball of his innings facing the fiery Jofra Archer.
As for Ishan, the 24-year-old had played his debut innings for India three days earlier than Surya against the same opposition at the same venue. Coincidentally he, too, had returned with a match-winning half-century as India clinched the match by 7 wickets. Although he didn’t hit a first-ball six, he was advised to do so by then captain Virat Kohli.
On his ODI debut against Sri Lanka in July the same year, Kishan had smashed a first-ball six off spin-bowling all-rounder Dhananjaya De Silva.
