ধবল কুলকার্নি

A genuine swing bowler who clocks an average speed in the mid 130s, Dhawal Kulkarni's name has come up frequently in the Mumbai cricketing fraternity ever since he landed up in the U17 Vijay Hazare competition in 2005-06. Over the years, he has regularly been in the list of India's pace bowling list although mostly on the bench. Dhawal has featured in white-ball cricket for the country and to be fair to him, hasn't really let his side down during those stints, producing fairly good numbers. However, there is a feeling that he relies too much on movement off pitch and as a result, seems benign on tracks that are docile.

The debut Ranji season was a dream come true phase for Dhawal has became the most successful bowler of the season and since then, he has never looked back. The Mumbai side have looked up to him for breakthroughs and he has rarely disappointed. In the 2012-13 season, Dhawal once again emerged among the top wicket-takers as Mumbai stormed their way to a whopping 40th Ranji title. All these exploits continued to strengthen his name as one of the most reliable pacers going around in the domestic circuit.

Dhawal continues to make all the right noises and that has meant that he has always remained in the minds of the national selectors. With India's pace bowling stocks rising considerably in recent years, Dhawal will have to keep up the good work to be in the race.

IPL through the years

A productive swing bowler who naturally relishes the new ball, Dhawal Kulkarni has been an unsung performer in the IPL. In his initial years, he played for his native franchise Mumbai Indians before moving to Rajasthan Royals until the latter’s suspension in 2015 saw him moving to Gujarat Lions for two years. At the fresh auctions in 2018, RR ensured that they got the Mumbai pacer back in the ranks. Over the years, Dhawal has never really featured throughout an IPL season, often finding himself in and out of the side. On pitches that arev drier and slower, he has mostly made way for quicker bowlers or an alternate spinner, given his dependence on swing and seam movement. He hasn’t been great at the death either, which is another flaw that’s hurt Dhawal in the IPL. However, considering the wealth of experience that he has at the domestic level, he is a good signing to have in the squad to mix with the younger boys.

By Hariprasad Sadanandan