Wisden’s writers look ahead to cricket in 2020 – a big year for the sport with two T20 World Cups, a new format with The Hundred, and much more.
There are legitimate calls for 2019 to be considered the most exciting year in the sport yet – well of course, with that World Cup final and those epics in Durban and Headingley – but 2020 promises to be just as thrilling.
There will be two separate T20 World Cups, the first edition of The Hundred, the World Test Championship getting on, and the steady diet of franchise T20 leagues … there is scope for plenty of action.
With that in mind, this is what some of Wisden’s writers are expecting from 2020:
2020 will be the year of …
KK: Shafali Verma. She’s only 15, but brings exciting ball-striking to an Indian side that desperately needs it in a T20 World Cup year.
MN: Yashasvi Jaiswal. He has already scored 779 runs in 13 List A games for Mumbai, including a double-century, against some of the best bowlers in India’s domestic circuit. It looks highly likely 2020 will be continuation of all that.
BG: Naseem Shah. Already looking the part at Test level, the news of his release from Pakistan’s Under-19 World Cup squad would have been music to the ears of number of young batsmen.
AG: Yashasvi Jaiswal’s rise has been meteoric. Jaiswal’s talents will be on the global map in 2020, first at the Under-19 World Cup in South Africa, and then in the IPL, if he’s able to crack the Rajasthan Royals XI.
AS: Shubhang Hegde. He’s got a lot of experience already, playing and succeeding in different levels of junior cricket. He’s got good control over his left-arm spin, is a handy bat, and seems to have matured way before his peers.
SD: Naseem Shah. Only 16, with barely any international exposure, the Pakistan senior and U19 sides are already fighting for him. Expect more.
RK: Naseem Shah. He’s already caught in a tug-of-war between Pakistan’s Test team and their U19 World Cup squad.
GS: Priyam Garg. He will be leading India at the Under-19 World Cup. In the last Ranji Trophy, he was Uttar Pradesh’s second-highest run-getter, with 814 runs at 67.83, including a career-best 208.
RG: Akash Singh. The Rajasthan quick possesses a genuine inswinger and a good yorker. His bowling action slightly resembles Trent Boult, he’s already been picked by Rajasthan Royals in the IPL, and India’s need for a quality left-arm quick makes Akash the man for the future.
