It turned out to be a special moment for young 20-year-old Marco Jansen as he made his Indian Premier League debut in the season opener against Royal Challengers Bangalore on Friday. The South African pacer was purchased by the defending champions for his base price of Rs 20 lakh at the mini-auction held in February this year. 



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Jansen is a very raw cricketer and has just first-class experience under his kitty but shares a history with opposition skipper Virat Kohli.  


As per a report in ESPNcricinfo, 17-year-old Jansen had beated Kohli thrice in a row, while bowling at nets during India's tour of South Africa in early 2018. 


Zaheer Khan, the director of cricket operations of Mumbai Indians, had said that the franchise had expected a bidding war for the South Africa, while team owner Akash Ambani mentioned that they had been tracking the bowler for almost two years before signing him up.  



Owing to his effective performance in South Africa's domestic circuit, Jansen was also included in their national squad for the tour to Pakistan, held earlier this year. 


Meanwhile, former Chennai Super Kings player Subramaniam Badrinath and renowned cricket commentator Harsha Bhogle lauded Jansen's selection in the side. 




Badrinath in his tweet said that Mumbai Indians have the ability to unearth talent, while Bhogle opined that the franchise did the right thing by giving the youngster a chance so early in the tournament.