Anuj Rawat of Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) is one of the bright new Indian prospects who have piqued the interest of IPL 2022 spectators. One of the uncapped players to keep an eye on is the young left-hander with a decent technique and sluggish batting approach.
Opener Anuj Rawat led Royal Challengers Bangalore’s assault in a seven-wicket loss to five-time winners Mumbai Indians on Saturday, leaving Rohit Sharma and company with four straight losses in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2022.
RCB won with nine balls to spare after Rawat slammed six sixes on his way to a quick-fire 66 off 47.
Rawat put arguably his best performance of the season in RCB’s league-stage match against the Mumbai Indians on Saturday (April 9). (MI). To bat through RCB’s successful run-chase, the wicketkeeper-batter played a really outstanding performance of 66 off 47 balls, including two fours and six sixes.
It was the 22-year-first old’s substantial score in IPL cricket – his first half-century in the league – and a great example of what drew RCB’s attention. At the domestic level, Anuj Rawat is noted for his eye-catching ability to hit sixes and destroy opposition attacks.
Following the departures of KS Bharat and Devdutt Padikkal from their team, RCB addressed numerous vacancies with one player after buying INR 3.40 crores for Rawat at the February mega auction.
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That bid was made possible by outstanding performances in domestic cricket. Rawat made his Ranji Trophy debut before turning 18 in October 2017 and made an immediate impact, striking 50 in his first two first-class games. He followed that up with his first senior domestic century against Madhya Pradesh.
That century demonstrated not only Rawat’s brilliance but also his strong temperament, as he turned Delhi’s fortunes around from a precarious 36 for 5 positions with an exceptional knock of 134 off 183 balls.
Despite his all-star start in the Ranji Trophy, it is white-ball cricket that has seen the best of the Delhi youngster, who became a near-certain pick ahead of the auction with a few outstanding performances last season.
Rawat averaged 58.33 with a strike rate of 108.69 in four innings of the 50-over Vijay Hazare Trophy 2021-22, then followed that up with a strong performance in the Syed Mushtaq Ali T20, scoring 15 fours and ten sixes within just five innings.
Anuj Rawat is Delhi’s next ‘Rishabh Pant
Anuj Rawat has a similar experience to Rishabh Pant, India’s legendary first-choice wicketkeeper-batter. Rawat, like Pant, relocated from Uttarakhand to Delhi to pursue his cricketing aspirations at a young age with good coaching and support in the face of intense competition. The cricketer is from Ramnagar, a small town in Nainital, but he received his cricket education in India’s capital city.
Rawat moved to Delhi with his family when he was only ten years old. He hails from a low-income family since his father is a farmer and his mother is a homemaker. Despite this, they never let their struggles to make ends meet interfere with their son’s hopes and aspirations.
When the batter informed his father of his desire to play cricket, elder Rawat chose to relocate to Delhi to ensure that his son receives the proper coaching during his key early years.
Anuj Rawat has incorporated into the Delhi U-19 set-up shortly after, in the 2016-17 season, and played the Ranji Trophy, India’s best domestic first-class competition, the following winter.
Notably, IPL 2022 with RCB is Rawat’s third season in the league, following a pair of seasons with inaugural season champions Rajasthan Royals (RR), who benched him for the whole IPL 2020 and may only play one game in IPL 2021.
Not only has the RCB think-tank supplied Rawat with role clarity and assurance of his place, but it has also assigned him to his best-suited position in the batting unit. For Delhi, the left-hander has shown a willingness to adjust in the middle order, although he has always liked to open the innings.
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The IPL journey
Rawat was originally acquired in an auction in 2020 when the Rajasthan Royals paid Rs 80 lakh for his services. His debut, though, was only last year, and in his sole batting appearance in 2021, he was out on a first-ball duck against the Kolkata Knight Riders.
He has now played four matches this season, scoring 113 runs at an SR of 120-21.