• sportzyverse
• Cricket news, IPL 2024
• 02/11/2024
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West Indies paceman Shamar Joseph is set to join Lucknow Super Giants as a replacement for English speedster Mark Wood, as confirmed by an IPL statement on Saturday. The transfer will see Joseph becoming a part of Super Giants for a sum of INR 3 crore.

Sources suggest that the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) withdrew Wood, a centrally contracted player, from IPL 2024 to carefully manage his workload, considering the T20 World Cup scheduled for June and England’s upcoming Test series against West Indies and Sri Lanka during the home summer. 

This move follows a similar strategy employed by the ECB for Jofra Archer, who was prevented from participating in the IPL 2024 auction to facilitate his recovery from injury in preparation for the T20 World Cup.

Lucknow Super Giants had initially secured Wood’s services in the auction ahead of the 2022 season, committing INR 7.50 crore for the player. Unfortunately, Wood missed that season due to an elbow injury. In the subsequent IPL 2023, he featured in four matches, claiming an impressive 11 wickets at an average of 11.82. 

Shamar Joseph Receives a Much-Deserved IPL Contract

Shamar Joseph, who made his West Indies debut in a drawn series against Australia, gained global recognition when he dismissed Steven Smith with his first ball in Test cricket. Despite West Indies losing the game in Adelaide, Joseph’s standout performance came in the second Test at the Gabba, where he secured a seven-wicket haul in the final innings, guiding West Indies to a thrilling eight-run victory. This triumph marked West Indies’ first Test win in Australia since 1997.

Born in Baracara, a small community in Guyana where there was no access to internet facilities or telephone connections up till some years back, Joseph initially worked as a security guard. The 24-year-old grew up idolizing Curtly Ambrose and Courtney Walsh. From practising with tape balls, fruits like lemon and orange, and melted plastic balls, Shamar Joseph is now all set to enter the cash-rich tournament under KL Rahul’s captaincy.