Seventeen-year-old Prithvi Shaw recently grabbed the headlines by slamming a century in his debut Ranji Trophy match against Tamil Nadu. Shaw, who hit 120 off 175 balls to take his team to the final, continued with the form in the final against Gujarat too and even though his team could not win the title, the teenager's performance might have already alerted Indian Premier League (IPL) franchises ahead of the auction for the 2017 edition scheduled in Bengaluru in February.
IPL teams are always on the lookout for young talents and Shaw, who proved his class with some consistent knocks in Ranji trophy, could be a prized hunt for them. Shaw's own liking of taking on the bowlers could make the franchises even more interested.
Shaw also scored 71 off 93 deliveries in the first essay in the final of the Ranji Trophy final against Gujarat and backed it up with a 35-ball 44 in the second. Though Parthiv Patel and his side eventually stole the show, Shaw could already be a new star on the horizon.
Sanjay Jagdale warns the youngster
However, not all are impressed with the prospects of Shaw getting associated with the IPL at the very beginning of his career. Former India selector Sanjay Jagdale, for instance, said the right-handed batsman should give less importance to the T20 tournament and focus more on playing for India. He said he is not against Shaw donning the IPL colours but felt apprehensive about his career if he put the slam-bang cricket ahead of the national call.
"His biggest challenge will be how much importance he gives to the IPL. There's nothing wrong if he gets to play there, but I feel many youngsters prefer to play in the IPL rather than playing for the country because IPL has a lot of money. You can play in the IPL but you can't give it priority. Playing for the country should be first. If you put the IPL first, then it can kill any player. It has killed a lot of young cricketers," Mid Day quoted Jagdale as saying.
"Ultimately, IPL is a domestic tournament. You get good exposure as you get the opportunity to play with top players, but once your focus shifts to money, then it becomes difficult to maintain a balance."
No matter what Jagdale feels, the IPL has been such a success that Shaw could find it difficult to ignore it if he gets a call. Moreover, it's not that the IPL has harmed cricketers more than not. Players like Manish Pandey, Ajinkya Rahane and Yusuf Pathan displayed their skills in IPL besides domestic cricket to get calls for the national team.
Nevertheless, Shaw should not think too much about his future now, as he is just 17-year-old. His objective should be too play consistent cricket in domestic circuit and the rest will fall in place.
