Meet Vignesh Puthur: Son of autorickshaw driver who became MI’s secret weapon against CSK

Mumbai Indians have done it again, bringing in a relatively unknown talent to perform against the best in the world. MI's Vignesh Puthur shone on his IPL debut, taking 3 wickets for 32 runs against CSK. In the absence of pacer Jasprit Bumrah and captain Hardik Pandya, Puthur's 3-wicket haul gave hope to the MI line-up and helped them survive a little longer in the match.

Mumbai Indians stand-in captain Suryakumar Yadav was full of praise for the 24-year-old talent, adding that the spinner has a "bright" future ahead of him.

“I mean it was amazing to see him bowl like that. MI is known for bringing up such talents. The scouts do this 10 months before the Auction and I am sure he has a bright future ahead.” Surya told the broadcasters.

"(On holding back Vignesh's 4th over) Not really. I kept his last over in my pocket as I thought if the game goes deep, then I will introduce him into the attack but never mind it didn't go the way I thought." the MI Captain added.

Who is Vignesh Puthur?

Commentator Jatin Sapru delved into the origins of Vignesh Puthur, adding that the left arm wrist spinner is the son of an auto-rickshaw driver and has not yet played any senior-level matches for Kerala.

He played in a local league for a team called Alleppey Ripples, where he caught the attention of Mumbai’s scouts. They brought him in, had him bowl in the nets before giving the bowler a chance in the match.

MI Coach explains why he picked Vignesh:

In an interaction ESPNcricinfo, Mumbai Indians bowling coach Paras Mhambrey revealed the reason for picking Puthur. He said, "When we saw him for one of our trials, we saw the potential in him rather than looking into how much cricket he has played in the past.

"He spins the ball pretty consistently. Lands the ball on pretty much what [where] we wanted. Is pretty accurate with it. I think those are the tick marks that we look into but not only that. But it's just the fact that he is different. Spins the ball, has a googly. That kind of stuff. So you know he will be able to trouble quality batters with the skills that he has." Mhambrey added.

Vignesh Puthur's impact against CSK

Coming in as an impact substitute for Rohit Sharma, the 24-year-old from Kerala made an instant impact with the wicket of Ruturaj Gaikwad in his fifth ball. In his second and third overs, Vignesh Puthur dismissed Shivam Dube and Deepak Hooda to put CSK on the backfoot.

However, Rachin Ravindra's unbeaten half century ensured CSK romp home with five balls to spare while chasing Mumbai Indians' 155/9. Following the game, MS Dhoni was caught seen praising Vignesh Puthur for his bowling. The CSK legend put his hand to Vignesh's Puthur's shoulders and asked something. The youngster too obliged with an answer, the video of which went viral on social media.