The 2024 edition of the UP T20 League features six teams: Gorakhpur Lions, Kanpur Superstars, Kashi Rudras, Noida Kings, Lucknow Falcons, and Meerut Mavericks.
During the round-robin stage, each team will face the other five teams twice. Following the league phase, the tournament will advance to the playoffs, which include Qualifier 1, Eliminator, Qualifier 2, and the final showdown.
A total of 34 matches will be played, culminating in the final on September 14. All games will be hosted at the Bharat Ratna Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Cricket Stadium in Lucknow.
All the teams are prepped up for an electrifying competition on field and there are some key players which are likely to gain the spotlight.
Rinku Singh (Meerut Mavericks)
Rinku Singh captured the spotlight with a spectacular finish for the Kolkata Knight Riders against the Gujarat Titans in the 2023 IPL. Facing a daunting target with 28 runs needed from just five balls, the match appeared lost for KKR. However, Rinku turned the game around with five consecutive sixes, delivering a thrilling victory that made everyone sit up and take notice. This performance not only established him as an IPL star but also highlighted his potential as a key finisher for India.
Rinku’s exceptional form earned him a place in the Indian squad for the T20I series in Ireland. In his brief international stint, he has appeared in 22 T20Is, averaging 69.5 with a strike rate of 175.21. He also set a new record for India with a partnership of 190 runs off just 95 balls alongside Rohit Sharma against Afghanistan.
Although he was a reserve for the Indian team during their triumphant 2024 T20 World Cup campaign, which concluded with victory on July 29 in Barbados, Rinku was instrumental in KKR’s success during the 2024 IPL season.
Bhuvneshwar Kumar (Lucknow Falcons)
When Bhuvneshwar Kumar debuted for India in 2012, he seemed to be the answer to the team’s long-standing fast-bowling issues. Though he didn’t bowl at express pace, he brought exceptional swing and a deadly inswinger to the table. His impact was immediate: he dismissed Nasir Jamshed with his very first delivery in T20Is, bowled out Mohammad Hafeez with his opening ODI delivery, and played a key role in India’s historic 4-0 whitewash of Australia in 2013.
Even before his international success, Bhuvneshwar showed promise. At just 19, he dismissed Sachin Tendulkar for a duck in the 2008-09 Ranji Trophy final. His versatility extended to batting as well, highlighted by a crucial 128 he scored while batting at No. 8 in the 2012-13 Duleep Trophy semi-final. On India’s challenging 2014 tour of England, he was a standout performer, taking 19 wickets—including a match-winning 6 for 82 at Lord’s—and finishing with an average of 26.63.
In the IPL, Bhuvneshwar’s career truly flourished. Although he started with Royal Challengers Bangalore and later played for Pune Warriors without much impact, his fortunes changed when he joined Sunrisers Hyderabad in 2014. He quickly became a linchpin of their bowling attack, excelling in both powerplay and death overs. Over his first four seasons with Sunrisers, he consistently took more than 18 wickets each year, clinching the Purple Cap in 2016 and 2017. His contributions were pivotal in Sunrisers Hyderabad’s sole IPL title win in 2016, and he remains the franchise’s all-time leading wicket-taker.
Dhruv Jurel (Gorakhpur Lions)
Dhruv Jurel, the son of a Kargil war veteran, has carved out a notable career in cricket. He played a key role in helping India secure the Under-19 Asia Cup title in Sri Lanka and later serving as vice-captain in the 2020 Under-19 World Cup in South Africa. Despite limited domestic experience, Jurel was picked up by the Rajasthan Royals for the 2022 IPL season, although he didn’t get an opportunity to play that year. He made his IPL debut in 2023, making a memorable impact as he scored an unbeaten 32 off 15 balls against the Punjab Kings, solidifying his place in the team despite a loss.
Jurel’s rise continued in domestic cricket with a standout performance in his sixth first-class match. He scored a staggering 249 runs against Nagaland while opening the innings for Uttar Pradesh in the 2022-23 Ranji Trophy. His impressive form earned him his first call-up to the Indian team for the 2024 Test series against England. Jurel made his debut in the third Test in Rajkot, scoring a crucial 46. He followed this with a remarkable performance in the next Test in Ranchi, where he notched up 90 and remained unbeaten on 39, earning the Player of the Match award.
Yash Dayal (Gorakhpur Lions)
Yash Dayal, a promising left-arm fast bowler from Allahabad, began his cricketing journey with Uttar Pradesh’s age-group teams. He first made his mark at the senior level in List A cricket for Uttar Pradesh in 2018 and quickly transitioned into first-class cricket. His T20 debut came in February 2019 during the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy against Maharashtra.
Dayal’s performance in T20 cricket drew significant attention from Indian T20 League teams during the 2022 auction. He was picked up by the Gujarat franchise, making his debut season impactful with 9 wickets in 11 matches, contributing to Gujarat’s championship win. He was retained for the 2023 season but things took an unexpected turn and a storm named Rinku Singh hit 29 runs in his over which crushed his economy, GT even lost the match. But in 2024 he was picked by Royal Challengers Bengaluru and had a good comeback.
In his first-class career, Dayal has taken 72 wickets in 42 innings across 23 matches, maintaining an economy rate of 2.97 and an average of 29.26.
Nitish Rana (Noida Super Kings)
Nitish Rana made his List A and T20 debuts for Delhi during the 2012-13 season, but it was his first-class debut in the 2015-16 season that truly marked his arrival. He made an impressive start, notably running out Wasim Jaffer for a duck and scoring a half-century on debut against Vidarbha. By the end of his debut first-class season, Rana had emerged as Delhi’s leading run-scorer, accumulating 557 runs at an average of 50.63, including one century and three fifties.
Rana’s big-hitting prowess was honed during his time with the Mumbai Indians. He was first bought by the franchise in the 2015 IPL auction for INR 10 lakh but didn’t get to play in the 2015 season. He was retained for the 2016 season after an outstanding performance in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, where he was the top six-hitter. His breakthrough season came in IPL 2017, where he played 13 matches for Mumbai, scoring 333 runs, eventually Mumbai Indians won their third title that year.
After being released by Mumbai Indians, Rana was picked up by the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in the subsequent auction. KKR utilized him as a bowler as well, and he made a significant impact by dismissing both AB de Villiers and Virat Kohli in consecutive deliveries during a match against RCB. In 2023, following the injury of newly appointed captain Shreyas Iyer, Rana stepped up as KKR’s captain for the season. He had a standout year, finishing with 413 runs, making it his most successful IPL season to date.
UP T20 League- Live Streaming and Broadcast Details
The UP T20 League will be streamed live on the JioCinema and the FanCode app and website. It will also be will be aired live on the Sports 18 network.
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