Fraser-McGurk lands IPL deal with Delhi

Australian batting sensation Jake Fraser-McGurk is heading to the IPL this year after landing a replacement player deal with the Ricky Ponting-coached Delhi Capitals.

Fraser-McGurk earns his maiden stint at the world's most lucrative T20 tournament to cap a summer in which he made his Australia ODI debut and belted 41 off 18 balls against West Indies.

That came after a breakout KFC BBL|13 season with the Melbourne Renegades, and blasting a world-record 29-ball hundred for South Australia in the Marsh One-Day Cup.

Fraser-McGurk has been signed to an A$92,000 deal as a replacement player for South Africa seamer Lungi Ngidi, who has withdrawn due to a lower back injury.

The Melbourne-born batter will help fill the void for Delhi left by England's Harry Brook, who also pulled out of the tournament this week as he mourns the death of his grandmother, having revealed her impending passing was the reason he left the Test tour of India.

Nicknamed 'The Rooster' or 'JFM', the 21-year-old linked up with Delhi's sister franchise Dubai Capitals at the ILT20 in January, playing three games where he hit 109 runs from 54 balls.

He will join fellow Australians David Warner, Mitch Marsh and Jhye Richardson in the Delhi squad, which will also see a return to top-flight cricket for Rishabh Pant, the star Indian wicketkeeper-batter who has been sidelined after a serious car accident in December 2022.

Australian cricket legend Ponting raised eyebrows in February when he said Fraser-McGurk was a future Test star and was as talented as a young Warner.

"(Fraser-McGurk) is someone that can be well and truly fast-tracked through the Australian system," Ponting said in February.

"With the talent and the skill that (Warner) had – Jake has got as much talent as David had come coming through ... the earlier they can get him into the system (the better). Get him playing and letting him work out for himself the best way to have success in all the different formats."

Despite his exploits against the white ball, Fraser-McGurk has so far struggled to translate that to runs against the red ball after being elevated to bat against the new ball by South Australia.

After Ponting touted him as a Test prospect, Fraser-McGurk produced returns of 0, 1, 16, 2, 14 and 2 in the Sheffield Shield.

He had, however, posted a maiden first-class century of 101 off 106 balls at Adelaide Oval against his native state Victoria last November, but that was only the second time he has passed fifty in his 30 first-class innings.

National selector George Bailey indicated Fraser-McGurk was a talent the Aussies would be keeping a close eye on, with repeated insistence the coming IPL will influence thinking for this year's T20 World Cup squad.

"Thrilled with what he did when he came in and great to see him get an opportunity through those one-dayers," Bailey said in the wake of his ODI debut against the Windies.

"There's clearly a high, high degree of talent with Jake.

"His ability to learn about how to best utilise that (talent) across the formats will be really interesting over the next coming years."

Australians in IPL 2024

Delhi Capitals: Mitch Marsh (A$1.2m), David Warner (A$1.16m), Jhye Richardson (A$890,000), Jake Fraser-McGurk (A$92,000)

Gujarat Titans: Spencer Johnson (A$1.78m), Matthew Wade (A$446,000)

Kolkata Knight Riders: Mitchell Starc (A$4.43m)

Lucknow Super Giants: Marcus Stoinis (A$1.7m), Ashton Turner (A$178,000)

Mumbai Indians: Tim David (A$1.53m), Jason Behrendorff (A$135,000)

Punjab Kings: Nathan Ellis (A$135,000)

Rajasthan Royals: Adam Zampa (A$270,000)

Royal Challengers Bangalore: Cameron Green (A$3.15m), Glenn Maxwell (A$2m)

Sunrisers Hyderabad: Pat Cummins (A$3.67m), Travis Head (A$1.2m)

*Prices in AUD, conversions correct at time of auction