Krishnappa Gowtham Falls in Price but Is Climbing in Impact: IPL 2022

Krishnappa Gowtham was once a sure-shot starter as he had been given a lot of responsibilities by the Rajasthan Royals. In 2018 he was seen as a project in his team and took up unusual roles. His leg-spin was used as an aggressive option as he partnered Shreyas Gopal and he doubled up as a handy finisher. He helped break the myth that spinners cannot bowl in the death, and went on to be an effective bowler in the end overs. Coming in to bat in the last few overs, Gowtham showcased his big-hitting abilities and even took on Jasprit Bumrah to make an 11 ball 33 while sealing an improbable win.

Following his season in the spotlight as a relative youngster, Krishnappa Gowtham fell off radar a touch. He moved to the Punjab Kings but didn’t get too many opportunities with them. His biggest high and low came in the next season though. Ahead of IPL 2021, Krishnappa Gowtham was bought by the Chennai Super Kings for a record 9.25 Crores. He became the richest uncapped player in the IPL. Despite the huge sum though, Krishnappa Gowtham didn’t have a key role in the side. He was benched due to the presence of Moeen Ali. In Ali, CSK had a top-order batter who could provide two to three overs regularly.

Krishnappa Gowtham was still a part of a title winning campaign without having to play much. In between the season, Krishnappa Gowtham also went on to become a capped player. He made his debut against Sri Lanka, raising his base price in the auctions.

The 2022 Auctions saw Krishnappa Gowtham’s name come up rather silentliy. He didn’t trigger much of a bidding war and went for 90 Lakhs. With LSG securing his services, he started off in the bench but is slowly starting to get some regular opportunities.

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In his first game against the Delhi Capitals, Gowtham was given the second over and hammered immediately by a rampaging Krishnappa Gowtham. He came back later and had another go at Shaw but ended up being hit for runs again. Two balls into his second over, after getting hammered, Gowtham finally beat Shaw, found his edge and dismissed him. The wicket did wonders to his confidence as Gowtham was able to apply a squeeze along with Ravi Bishnoi.

He bowled a maiden over as well, and runs were tough to come for Delhi as they ended with a below par score. He made the explosive Rishabh Pant play out his first maiden over. The fighting performance gave Gowtham another game as he was a part of the side against the Rajasthan Royals.

This time around, his bowling was pretty decent again. He picked up two key wickets in the tenth over to set the Royals back big time. Dismissing Padikkal and Van Der Dussen helped LSG apply a mini choke on the Royals, and squeezed the momentum out of their innings.

With the bat, Krishnappa Gowtham was experimented at the top-order. With a target of 165, he was sent to face a rampaging Trent Boult in the bid of finding some quick runs. The move also had the added effect of deepening the line-up as Stoinis walked out at number eight. Things didn’t work out as planned though as Boult was too good, dismissing Gowtham for a first ball duck. While the move failed, it looks a smart one and could be tried a couple more times going forward.

The move also provides an indication that Gowtham is seen as a regular in the side and his team is trying to optimize his presence. Two games into his season, Gowtham has some nice IPL memories to take home this season and will be hoping to build on from the current start.