New Delhi: Rajasthan Royals (RR) are just one win away from making it to the playoffs of IPL 2026, taking them closer to the much-awaited IPL title. However, it will certainly not be easy against Hardik Pandya-led Mumbai Indians (MI), who will be eager to end their topsy-turvy season on a high. While the likes of Jofra Archer and Ravindra Jadeja Certainly the center of attention, 20-year-old leg-spinner Yash Raj Panja has been an extraordinary game-changer. The Abu Dhabi-born Panja has picked up six wickets in five matches so far this season at an economy rate of 8.35. The leg-spinner particularly stood out for his performance in RR’s last match against Lucknow Supergiants (LSG), where he bowled Josh Inglis, who emerged as the pick of the bowlers.While the 6 feet 5 inches tall Panja has impressed everyone in his first IPL season, his early days as a cricketer were definitely rocky to say the least. Sandeep Dhuri, the coach at Abu Dhabi’s Zayed Cricket Academy, where the leg-spinner joined at the age of 7, said he had “absolutely nothing” as far as cricket was concerned. Dhuri added that Panja was scary at first but he was able to master it quickly.‘Switch from pace to legspin’“I started as a fast bowler but decided to switch to legspin based on the information provided by a coach at the Gary Kirsten Cricket Academy in South Africa. He told me that I had a lot of potential as a spinner, which I thought was a big deal, which led to a change,” said the RR legspinner in an exclusive interaction with Timecoms.In.While Panja initially played cricket with a lot of focus on academics, a turning point soon took place after being spotted by former Karnataka head coach Karthik Jeswanth. The leg-spinner impressed Jeswant with his bounce, urging him to approach the RR cricketer’s parents to promote cricket in a fair manner. Panja’s parents, seeing his brother Yudhin’s struggles with injuries, which eventually led to early retirement, were very skeptical about giving up everything at the expense of academics.Alastair Cook’s X Factor commentaryHowever, Jeshwant was able to convince him of Yash’s potential, paving the way for him to focus on the sport. “Former England captain Alastair Cook had described him as a guy with X-factor about two months before I saw him. That played a role as well,” Jeswant shared. The 20-year-old leg-spinner decided to represent Karnataka in domestic cricket, actively training at the Six Cricket Academy in Bengaluru to focus on removing chinks in the armour. Panja’s ability to deliver the ball at the right length soon caught the attention of coach Zubin Bharucha, paving the way for a game-changing development.‘You have chosen the right man’“I knew Yash had the potential to play for India at first glance given his incredible pace and flawless delivery. Taller leg-spinners usually overpitch the ball due to the height factor. However, Yash kept his length bowling to Dhruv Jorrell, hitting the top of the bat consistently, as we said,” Jorrell said.A routine was soon developed, which included two practice sessions where Yash was expected to bowl 70 overs a day. Bharucha encouraged an emphasis on “volume” to develop a strong foundation that could help build mental strength, clarity, and consistency. Panja initially struggled to adjust to this new routine, unable to meet his quota of overs due to other commitments.“I had to give a big lecture on keeping your head down and sticking to bowling 70 overs in two sessions because without that there will be no progress. Maintaining intensity while bowling each ball is very important as this is where the magic happens. Although Yash initially did not understand the concept, he gradually got the hang of it. You cannot just bowl 10 overs and disappear,” shared Bharucha.“We worked on his alignment and the zone where the ball should land. One day, I removed all the stumps from the crease line and told him to bowl freely. There were some awkward moments but Yash’s skills improved. Shane Warne used to say, ‘You have control over how the ball reaches the batsman but it still has to land in the same place at a good length’, which I mentioned during my talk.learn from Yuzvendra ChahalRavichandran AshwinAs Panja piled on the volume, sticking to an intense routine where there was no room for failure, mastery of the craft soon became a shining attribute. The 20-year-old cricketer continued to push his limits after initially struggling to bowl 10-15 overs a day, ensuring 40 consecutive overs until the delivery was spot on. A better work ethic soon became a core concept mentally, as did personal standards, with a strong focus on outworking everyone. Off the field, Panja introduced meditation into his routine, which resulted in the ability to focus on the present rather than succumbing to stress.“My googly was a problem about a year ago. However, doing 15 overs of googlies in the exact spot helped me land the ball exactly where I wanted. Zubin was key in emphasizing the volume of the head as it instills confidence,” shares Yash.The RR leg-spinner has described Anil Kumble and Yuzvinder Chahal as his biggest role models, highlighting the inputs he received from the latter as a net bowler with RR in 2024.Call for Team India Fast Track.Bharucha believes that Panja should be considered as such to quickly integrate into the Team India set-up. Varun Chakraborty.considering the quality and command of his delivery. “The ceiling is very high. He is far ahead of others in the same profile, especially given the incredible profile of the ball, the accuracy and the multiple variations. I told Yash, ‘Kumble has made a career out of bowling at exactly one length. Why can’t you do that? It’s an incredible template,'” he said.
