'The greater upside belongs to him' - Gambhir picks Avesh Khan over Harshal Patel as bowler of IPL 2021

The Indian Premier League 2021 saw the emergence of two Indian fast-bowlers. Harshal Patel, who plays for Royal Challengers Bangalore is currently holding the purple cap with 29 wickets while Avesh Khan of Delhi Capitals is closing in as a second-highest wicket-taker with 22 wickets. 

According to former Indian batter Gautam Gambhir, there are greater upsides to having Avesh Khan in your side than Harshal Patel. Khan played for India at the U-19 World Cup in 2016 in Bangladesh while Harshal spent season after season as a backup option in the franchises before making it big this year. 

“Avesh Khan can bowl across different phases of the innings with great impact. He can bowl with the new ball, nip it in, he can bowl in the middle, and hustle you with pace. Harshal is slightly different, depending more on batsmen coming at him. So, you can compartmentalize them in different packages. The greater upside belongs to Avesh Khan if he can continue on the trend,” Gambhir told ESPNcricinfo.

He’s bowling alongside Rabada, Nortje and has not looked any less: Gautam Gambhir

It is worth noting that Avesh’s good form helped him get a chance in the Indian reserves players that travelled to England during the summer for the Test series. He, unfortunately, had to return with an injury. Gambhir further noted that he has been bowling alongside Kagiso Rabada and Anrich Nortje and has not looked any less than them. 

“Avesh Khan can bowl at different situations of the game. He is bowling alongside the likes of Rabada and Nortje and he has not looked any less than them, and they are world-class bowlers. He can bowl over 140, I still remember the yorker he bowled to Pandya at Sharjah, so the skillset is there. So, Avesh Khan is closer and I will probably pick Avesh Khan before he has been the stand-alone bowler in this tournament,” Gambhir explained.

Before this season, Khan had nine games in the four seasons of the IPL, where he managed to pick only five wickets. However, this year, the Delhi management showed faith in him which was responded with wickets in almost every game. His record has been quite phenomenal. It is also worth noting that Khan has an economy of 7.14 while Harshal’s economy is 8.93.