Lanka Premier League 2022- Top 3 emerging players to watch out for

The much-awaited third edition of the Lanka Premier League (LPL) is all set to enthral fans with entertaining cricket and thrilling contests. The league will begin with the first match between Jaffna Kings and Galle Gladiators on December 6. LPL 2022 was originally slated to be played from August 1 to August 21. But millions of cricket lovers in the subcontinent were disappointed when the LPL was postponed due to Sri Lanka’s economic crisis.

Here are the Top 3 emerging players to watch out for :

1. Dominic Drakes

Dominic Drakes (Source - Twitter)

Ahead of the 2018 Caribbean Premier League, Drakes was named as one of five players to watch in the tournament. He made his T20 debut for Barbados Tridents in the tournament on 4 September 2018. He also replaced Sam Curran in the 2021 Indian T20 League for Chennai Franchise. But in 2022, he was bought by Gujarat Franchise.

Talking about the Lanka Premier League, Drakes was signed by Colombo Stars for the third edition of the tournament. Drakes has taken 42 wickets in 44 matches in the shortest format.

2. Azam Khan

Azam Khan (Source - Twitter)

Pakistan wicketkeeper-batter Azam Khan made his T20 debut for the Quetta Gladiators in the 2019 Pakistan Super League on 5 March 2019.  In October 2020, he was drafted by the Galle Gladiators for the inaugural edition of the Lanka Premier League.  

In June 2021, Khan was named in Pakistan's T20I squads for their tour of England and the West Indies. He made his T20I debut on 16 July 2021, for Pakistan against England. The youngster has a good ability to hit the ball hard. Azam can be one of the emerging players in the third edition of LPL.

3. Rahmanullah Gurbaz

Rahmanullah Gurbaz (Source - Twitter)

Afghanistan opener Rahmanullah Gurbaz is recognized as one of the hard hitters of the ball. But the numbers don’t do justice to his ability as he has scored 896 runs in 35 T20I innings at an average of 25.60 with a strike rate of 138.27.

Gurbaz was bought by Gujarat Franchise in the 15^th edition of the Indian T20 League as a replacement for Jason Roy. However, he couldn’t get to play a single match in the cash-rich league in 2022. But the defending champions Gujarat have traded the wicketkeeper-batter to Kolkata Franchise for the forthcoming season of the tournament.