IPL 2025: Who is Ashwani Kumar, 23-year-old Mumbai Indian, who made dream debut against Kolkata Knight Riders

Kolkata Knight Riders' Ramandeep Singh praises Punjab teammate Ashwani Kumar's dream IPL debut with Mumbai Indians.

“We train at the same academy. Very happy for him.”

Despite being annihilated by Mumbai Indians, Kolkata Knight Riders allrounder Ramandeep Singh had a twinkle in his eye when he was asked about his Punjab teammate Ashwani Kumar’s exploits on Indian Premier League debut.

The academy Ramandeep was referring to is aptly named Launching Pad Cricket Academy in Mohali, founded by Varinder Singh. And on Monday night, Ashwani’s first flight in the world of IPL — that too donning the jersey of a franchise that’s served as a launchpad to multiple top cricketers of the current generations – took off on a perfect note, continuously created turbulence in the opposition camp and had a smooth landing.

The 23-year-old left-arm pacer from Jhanjheri village, around 20 km away from Chandigarh, bowled a magic spell to emerge as the Player of the Match in Mumbai Indians’ maiden outing of the season.

Despite having played in two Ranji Trophy matches (last in 2022), three Vijay Hazare Trophy games (last in 2022), and four Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy matches (2024) for Punjab, Ashwani had never picked more than three wickets in any format.

But on Monday (March 31, 2025), Ashwani made a statement with four wickets, including some of the biggest names in the IPL. His spell was instrumental in Mumbai Indians’ four-pronged pace attack dismantling Kolkata Knight Riders for just 116 runs.

At 23, Ashwani was largely seen as a back-up pacer for Punjab, but MI scouts spotted his precision, especially his ability to bowl wide yorkers consistently, during last year’s Sher-E-Punjab Trophy. Not many noticed when MI secured him at base price at the fag end of the IPL auction in Jeddah last year. But against KKR, Ashwani needed just one ball to grab the headlines.