IPL 2019: Wonder boy Prabhsimran Singh idolises MS Dhoni and Adam Gilchrist

The auction for the twelfth edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) in 2019 took place in Jaipur and the verdict was clearly in favour of the youngsters. One of the names that came to the top in this year’s auction is Punjab’s Prabhsimran Singh who bagged a deal of Rs 4.8 crore for home-based franchise Kings XI Punjab.

The youngster aged 18 has shown his talent with the bat despite getting ignored for the Under-19 team for a long time. He got a chance to represent India in the U-19 Asia Cup in Bangladesh this year and captaining the side for a few games, including the final, Singh hit two brisk fifties in the tournament including a 37-ball 65 in the title clash against Sri Lanka that India won.

The wicketkeeper-batsman has played just four List A games so far after making his debut against Afghanistan Emerging Team earlier this month and though hasn’t done much in these matches, his big-hitting quality is something that the IPL franchises have already taken note of.

“I was picked for the U19 Asia Cup and scored an 80 and 65 not out in a couple of matches. I was also part of the team in Emerging Asia Cup in Sri Lanka recently. I consider (Virender) Sehwag and (MS) Dhoni as my idols and I like to bat aggressively like them. When it comes to wicketkeeping, the inspirations are Dhoni and Adam Gilchrist,” the youngster was quoted as saying by CricketNext.

Singh was handpicked by former India wicket-keeper and national selector Kiran More for a glovesmen’s camp at the National Cricket Academy in Bengaluru earlier this year. He was one of the only five Under-19 keepers who was picked for the camp. More himself was pleasantly surprised by Singh’s achievement at the auction.

‘My parents were left with tears in eyes’

Singh was eagerly watching the auction at his home in Patiala with his parents and his eventual price after the bidding (his base price was Rs 20 lakh) left them teary-eyed, he told CricketNext.

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