IPL 2020: Abdul Samad Makes Debut for Sunrisers Hyderabad, Third Cricketer from Jammu and Kashmir to Play

Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) have handed a debut to Jammu and Kashmir’s 18-year-old all-rounder Abdul Samad against the Delhi Capitals. He becomes the third cricketer from the valley to play in the Indian Premier League.

Hyderabad made two changes in the playing eleven, Kane Williamson made his way back into the team by replacing Mohammed Nabi and Abdul Samad replaced Wriddhiman Saha.

Hailing from a place known as ‘The Paradise on Earth’, Abdul Samad is a young right-handed batsman who has the ability to hit the ball hard. He has been one of the shining lights who has come from the state of Jammu and Kashmir.

He has a T20 batting average of 40 and he can be handy with his leg-spin as well. The J&K star is coming off a breakout domestic season during which he scored two Ranji Trophy centuries.

Samad caught the eyes of former Indian pace bowler Irfan Pathan when he was playing at a camp organised for the state Ranji Trophy team. Pathan saw how this youngster was playing way better than other experienced players. Samad made his Twenty20 debut for Jammu & Kashmir in the 2018–19 Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy in February 2019 and that was followed by his List A and First-Class debut in the same year.

Samad scored a whopping 592 runs including 36 sixes he hit – the most by anyone in the season – that eventually led to J&K making it to the quarter-finals of the Ranji Trophy

Manzoor Dar, Rasikh Salam, and Parvez Rasool are the other three cricketers from Jammu and Kashmir to have been a part of the Indian Premier League. While Salam got a game of Mumbai Indians, Rasool was a regular feature of the Pune Warriors India franchise. Dar, part of KXIP, never got a game.