Follow UsSunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) are taking on Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) in Visakhapatnam, and Pat Cummins announced at the toss that his side have handed a debut to leg-spinner Zeeshan Ansari. Ansari was bought for INR 40 lakh by SRH at the mega auction, and he comes in place of Simarjeet Singh. But who is Zeeshan Ansari?
Who is Zeeshan Ansari?
A 25-year-old who hails from Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, Zeeshan caught the eyes of all IPL franchises at the 2024 edition of the Uttar Pradesh T20 League (UPT20). He was the highest wicket-taker there, taking 24 wickets at an economy of 7.60. At the UPT20 2024, Zeeshan represented Meerut Mavericks, who went on to win the tournament.
An attacking leggie, Zeeshan was used at the UPT20 2024 primarily in the middle-overs and at the death. Out of the 24 wickets he took, 14 wickets came in the 7-15 phase at an economy of 6.9, and an impressive 9 wickets came in the 16-20 phase at an economy of 7.4.
What was mighty impressive was that in the 16-20 phase (death overs), Zeeshan took a wicket every 7.3 balls while maintaining a super impressive economy.
Cummins is known for encouraging his bowlers to attack, so expect SRH to use the leggie to entice the batters to go for it, which will result in wickets falling.
T20s aside, Ansari has first-class experience too, having debuted for UP in red-ball cricket way back in 2017 at the age of 18. However, he hasn’t played any first-class cricket since 2020 despite boasting a very decent record, 17 wickets in 5 games at an average of 30.76.