The 13th season of the Indian Premier League (IPL) is scheduled to be commencing in less than 15 days now and the teams have already started formulating plans and strategies for the 2020 edition. Each of the 8 IPL franchises will rely on their core players to shoulder the responsibility and lead the team to win games from crucial encounters.

On Sunday, BCCI revealed the schedule for IPL 2020 and according to that, the defending champions Mumbai Indians (MI) will be locking horns with last season’s runner-ups Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in the tournament opener of the 13th edition. The second match will be played in Dubai on September 20 between Delhi Capitals (DC) and Kings XI Punjab (KXIP). Rajasthan Royals (RR) will be playing their first match against CSK on September 22, while Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) will be playing their opening game against MI on September 23.

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However, they will also look to some crucial players in every time who can make a massive difference for them this season. While cricket is certainly a team game, some cricketers have the ability to turn the match on its head with its capability itself.

Let’s have a look at one such game-changing ‘X-Factor’ player from KKR and RR franchises for IPL 2020.

Rajasthan Royals

Andrew Tye

Andrew Tye can be termed as a forgotten IPL hero and a T20 Cricket stalwart. Brought into the lineup by Gujarat Lions, Tye struck gold in his very first game. He picked up a hat-trick en route and finished the match with the exceptional figures of 5/17 on his debut. Tye triggered a bidding war between CSK, RR, and KXIP in the 2018 auction, before fetching ₹7.2 crores from KXIP. The man from Western Australia impressed immediately with 24 wickets and secured the purple cap that season.

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However, ahead of IPL 2020, he was bought by RR for ₹1 crore and without a doubt, has enough fire in his belly to come out with excellent returns for his respective franchise. This IPL could really pave the way for him to become a regular in the Australian T20 setup as well if he manages to deliver to his potential.

Ben Stokes

The most impressive cricketer in 2019, Ben Stokes will certainly be the most looked forward cricketer in IPL 2020. He is one of the core members of the Royals’ setup and the franchise will be immensely dependent on him during the upcoming IPL season. In IPL 2019, Stokes failed to deliver in both the departments and will be eager to prove his worth in the cash-rich league. 

However, Stokes will be missing initial games for RR in IPL 2020 as he is in New Zealand with his ailing father, Ged. 

Yashaswi Jaiswal

Yashasvi Jaiswal has had a memorable outing in the 2020 U-19 World Cup for India, scoring more than 400 runs in the tournament he went on to receive the player of the tournament award. One fantastic statistic about his U-19 World Cup is that he was never dismissed below the score of 59 throughout the tournament.

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Jaiswal also made a name for himself in domestic cricket when he became the youngest player to score a List-A double century. He created headlines when he smashed that fine double ton against Jharkhand in the Vijay Hazare Trophy 2019. Jaiswal will be looking forward to having a breakthrough IPL 2020 season at the top of the order for the Rajasthan Royals.

Kolkata Knight Riders

Andre Russell

The Caribbean swashbuckling all-rounder, Andre Russell is a name that resonates with fear. With an extraordinary capability of sending the ball outside the boundary line at will, Russell can decimate any bowling lineup on his day. While he is lethal with the willow, he can come in handy with his medium-pace bowling option. Having umpteen experience under his belt, Dre Russ will once again be the X-factor in the KKR side for the upcoming 13th edition of IPL.

In last season, Russell amassed as many as 510 runs in 14 matches at a brilliant average of 56.66 and a phenomenal strike-rate of 204.81. He also picked as many as 11 wickets at an average of 26.09.