Who is Saurabh Dubey? KKR hand IPL debut to Vidarbha left-arm pacer vs RCB

Kolkata Knight Riders handed an IPL debut to Vidarbha left-arm pacer Saurabh Dubey for their must-win clash against Royal Challengers Bengaluru in Raipur on Wednesday, with Varun Chakaravarthy ruled out due to a niggle.

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A wet outfield following rain delayed the toss by over an hour at the Shaheed Veer Narayan Singh International Stadium, although no overs were lost eventually. While the pitch covers were removed ahead of the scheduled start, large sections of the outfield remained covered as umpires conducted multiple inspections.

Once play was cleared to begin, RCB captain Rajat Patidar opted to bowl first, banking on the seam-friendly conditions that had troubled batters during Bengaluru’s previous outing against Mumbai Indians at the same venue.

For KKR, however, the bigger talking point was the absence of Varun Chakaravarthy. The mystery spinner, one of Kolkata’s most influential bowlers this season, missed the must-win encounter after sustaining a foot injury in the game against Delhi Capitals.

“Varun Chakarvarthy misses out, with a niggle. Saurabh Dubey comes in,” KKR captain Ajinkya Rahane confirmed at the toss.

Who is Saurabh Dubey?

Saurabh Dubey is a left-arm medium-fast bowler from Vidarbha who has built a reputation for extracting steep bounce with his towering 6’5” frame and swinging the new ball effectively.

Hailing from Wardha in Maharashtra, Dubey first gained attention in 2019 when he emerged as India’s leading wicket-taker at the ACC Emerging Teams Asia Cup. He was subsequently viewed as a promising fast-bowling prospect in domestic cricket.

In List-A cricket, Dubey has picked up 16 wickets in eight matches for Vidarbha, though opportunities at the senior level have remained limited. Overall, he has played only 11 senior matches and has not featured in competitive cricket since a T20 game for Vidarbha in October 2023.

Despite the long gap, Dubey impressed in the Vidarbha Pro T20 League while representing Orange Tigers last year, performances that helped put him back on the IPL radar.

His IPL journey has been a story of persistence. Sunrisers Hyderabad bought him in 2022, but an injury curtailed his season before he could make an appearance. He later worked as a net bowler with Mumbai Indians while continuing to search for another breakthrough opportunity.

KKR eventually signed Dubey as a replacement for injured India pacer Akash Deep after conducting extensive trials during their training camp in Kolkata. Several domestic quicks, including Navdeep Saini, KM Asif, Simarjeet Singh, Akash Madhwal and Sandeep Warrier, were assessed before the franchise settled on Dubey.

Akash Deep was ruled out of the season due to a lower-back injury, while Harshit Rana has also been struggling with a knee issue, forcing KKR to reinforce their pace department.

Dubey now joins a fast-bowling group featuring Matheesha Pathirana, Blessing Muzarabani, Vaibhav Arora, Kartik Tyagi and Umran Malik, with Cameron Green providing an additional seam option.

RCB, meanwhile, also reshuffled their combination for the Raipur encounter. Jacob Duffy replaced leg-spinner Suyash Sharma, while Romario Shepherd made way for Venkatesh Iyer. Devdutt Padikkal was named among the Impact Player substitutes.

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