Naman Tiwary Lsg GettyImage Credit source: Getty Images
Last year it was Vaibhav Suryavanshi and this time it was Karthik Sharma and Prashant Veer. In two consecutive IPL auctions, some young and new players gained the most attention. While Vaibhav Suryavanshi became the youngest player bought in the auction at the age of 13, Prashant and Karthik became the most expensive uncapped players in the IPL 2026 auction. But apart from these, the teams were kind to some new and unknown young faces in the auction this time, who will be eager to leave their mark in the IPL this time. One such name is- Naman Tiwari.
Who is Naman Tiwari?
When the players met in Abu Dhabi on 16 December auction When the name of 20-year-old fast bowler Naman Tiwari came up, there was a flurry of bids between Delhi Capitals and Rajasthan Royals. Soon Lucknow Super Giants also entered it and after 15 bids, finally Lucknow bought this young Indian bowler. Lucknow bid Rs 1 crore for Naman, which was registered at a base price of only Rs 30 lakh. That means more than 3 times.
But why did Lucknow spend so much money for this bowler? After all, who is Naman Tiwari, for whom 3 teams competed during the auction? The first answer is why Lucknow bet on him. There are two special reasons for this – firstly, Naman is from Lucknow, the capital of Uttar Pradesh. It was here that he grew up, learned cricket and made his place in Indian cricket. This can play a big role in providing local connect to the team. But there is another reason more than this and that is his bowling.
What is the big reason for betting on Naman?
Naman is only 20 years old but even at this age, he has the ability to bowl fast at a speed of 140 to 145 kilometers per hour, which is still rarely seen in Indian cricket. Naman was a part of India’s Under-19 World Cup finalist team in 2024 and took the maximum 12 wickets for the country in the tournament. Then this year he got a chance in the UP T20 League and here this bowler took 19 wickets with an excellent average of 16.
This performance gave LSG confidence that they could trust Naman. According to the report of ESPN-Cricinfo, Naman was playing the role of net bowler for this franchise for the last two consecutive seasons. In such a situation, the executives of the franchise had their eyes on him. Just needed to impress with the performance. Staying with Lucknow was also beneficial for Naman because during this time he got to learn a lot from the Indian team’s legendary fast bowler Zaheer Khan. Zaheer was the mentor of LSG last season and during this time Zaheer taught Naman the art of inswing, which helped the young bowler a lot.
Won the speed contest at the age of just 16
But how did Naman Tiwari reach here? It begins in Gomti Nagar, Lucknow, where the family lived in a rented house for a long time. In the report of Cricinfo, Naman told about his beginning that he wanted to become a batsman but when he did not get a chance to bat, he decided to become a fast bowler. He is also the fastest bowler in the world. Whether this will happen or not will be known in the coming time but he already had the speed.
When Rajasthan Royals ran a contest in Lucknow in 2021, Naman won the event at the age of 16 by hitting a speed of 135 kilometers per hour. From here he was called by Rajasthan as a net bowler and Naman got a chance to meet his hero Trent Boult. During this, apart from Bolt, he also got to talk to the legendary Sri Lankan pacer Lasith Malinga and learn the nuances of bowling.
How did father’s heart attack change Naman?
But like every cricketer emerging from small and big cities of India, family played a big role in Naman’s career. In this case, the deteriorating health of his father made a small boy serious about cricket. According to the report, when Naman was just 12 years old, his father suffered a heart attack and he lost his job as a contractor. His father started working as an insurance agent but his income started decreasing and at such a time, Naman, who went to cricket academy just to spend time, started taking the game seriously.
In no time, Naman made a place in the UP Under-14, Under-16 and Under-19 teams and gradually came to the notice of BCCI junior selectors while leaving a mark in the Cooch Behar Trophy. This got him a place in the Under-19 team and then in the World Cup 2024, this bowler proved himself by taking the most wickets for India. Only after the success of the Under-19 World Cup, Naman bought his own house in Lucknow and now the whole family leaves the rented house and lives in this house. Naman’s eyes and hopes are now fixed on IPL 2026, where he would like to attract the attention of senior selectors with a strong performance if he gets a chance.