2009 IPL Champions- Deccan Chargers: Where are they now?

Deccan Chargers finished the inaugural season of the Indian Premier League (IPL) at the bottom of the points table. They had a lot of stars in their team but nothing quite came out of those stars. The Hyderabad-based team took the IPL by storm when they won the league next year. In 2009, IPL was taken away from its home to South Africa where the bottom two teams of the 2008 season battled it out for the title. Adam Gilchrist led Deccan Chargers were eventual winners of the closely contested final and overshadowed Anil Kumble-led Royal Challengers Bangalore. It has been eight years since then and the things are ever so changed now. The times have turned good for some while the gods have had only bad luck for some of the players from the winning team. Here are the players from that Deccan Chargers team and we will have a look their current whereabouts. 1. Venugopal Rao (Photo Source: Getty Images) If you are an ardent cricket fan you will know this man. This little guy was known as the first Indian super-sub player was one of the hardest hitters in the Deccan Chargers line-up. He never quite made an impression while playing for the national team but was an integral part of his IPL team. He played his last first-class game for Gujarat back in 2015 and is away from the domestic circuit since then. 2. Azhar Bilakhia (Photo Source: Getty Images) Bilakhia played some good knocks for the Baroda team until 2009 but couldn’t make his name playing for the Deccan Chargers team. He could not capitalize on this experience and was ousted from his domestic team as well. At the age of 24, this young man retired and started looking after their family business. 3. T Suman (Photo Source: Google) Suman, an uncapped Indian player has played for various IPL teams. He couldn’t make a big name with any of them, though. He was last contracted with Sunrisers Hyderabad and did not feature for them as well. Suman is without a team for the current IPL season and has not played a first-class game since 2015. 4. Andrew Symonds Andrew Symonds. (Photo Source: Indian Premier League) Symonds was the key man in Deccan Chargers’ triumph in 2009 and since then has played little cricket. Right through his international career has was involved in various controversies. He though hinted a comeback in 2014 but couldn’t make it. Andrew acted as a consultant for the Australian team before the 2015 World Cup. 5. Rohit Sharma Rohit Sharma DC. (© Getty Images) Rohit was only young when he was crowned champion with the Deccan Chargers and has since only improved. He was the batting mainstay for the team right through the tournament and played a key role in their success. Since then he has evolved as a player, is now a regular member of the Indian team and has also led the Mumbai Indians to three IPL crowns along with a CLT20 title. 6. Herschelle Gibbs Adam Gilchrist and Herschelle Gibbs DC. (Photo Source: NDTV Sports) The South African opener played an important role in the triumph of the team. Gibbs was in the twilight of his career in 2009 but his prowess hadn’t declined. He along with Symonds and Rohit made crucial middle-order contributions. He retired from the cricket in 2010 and has had stints as a commentator. He is now leading a chilled life as a retired cricketer, something you would expect from Gibbs. 7. Scott Styris (Photo Source: Getty Images) Scotty Styris the Kiwi all-rounder was also an integral part of the team. He got the DC team wickets with the ball and played a few big shots lower down the order as well. He was on the verge of his retirement then. He soon retired from international cricket and has been working as a commentator ever since. 8. Nuwan Zoysa Nuwan Zoysa bowls in the nets. (Photo by Nick Laham/Getty Images) Nuwan Zoysa was one of the senior members of the DC team. The now 38-year-old former left-arm pacer had previously played for the Mumbai Indians in the IPL before moving down to Hyderabad. He continued to play for Sri Lanka for two more years before fading out. He has now retired from the game. 9. Fidel Edwards (Photo Source: Getty Images) Fidel Edwards the fierce bowler from the Caribbean did play an important role in the DC team. He had express pace behind him and that helped him edge past a lot of batsmen who always look to attack the ball in the shortest format. He went on to play for West Indies for a few more years but injuries have laid this beast down. He enjoys his life in Barbados now at the age of 36. 10. Manvinder Bisla (Photo Source: ESPNCricinfo) This wicketkeeper-batsman could hardly get his chance with the title winning team but went on to play a match-winning knock for Kolkata Knight Riders in 2012. Bisla was a safe keeper and an attacking opening batsman. At the age of 33, Bisla still plays cricket for various leagues. He was recently seen playing in the Dhaka Premier Division Cricket League. In the IPL 2018 auction he went unsold. 11. Harmeet Singh (Photo Source: Getty Images) Harmeet was the medium pacer who mostly bowled with the keeper up to the stumps. He was important in the DC squad as he gave them some good middle of the innings overs. His strength was to chip away with the overs and pick wickets in between, which the opposition seldom expected. Harmeet still plays first-class cricket for Punjab and is in and out of the team. 12. Pragyan Ojha (Photo Source: Getty Images) Pragyan Ojha was still young when they won the title. He was one of those players whose career developed after the win and he earned a place in the national team. Ojha was an integral part of the Indian team before Ravindra Jadeja entered and has won some Test matches for India. He is currently paying for Hyderabad in domestic. 13. VVS Laxman (Photo Source: Getty Images) This very very special batsman did wonders for India in the Test matches. He played a huge role on and off the field in DC’s win. Laxman was not just the batsman but rather a batting mentor for the team. He went on to represent India for 3 more years before retiring at the age of 37. Laxman is now a TV commentator and enjoys his time around the game of cricket. 14. Dwayne Smith (Photo Source: Getty Images) This outrageous hitter of the ball played many match winning innings for the IPL team. He went on to play for various IPL team and is currently participating in the T20 Blitz tournament held in Hong Kong. Smith is a classic West Indies player and smashes the ball big, he had a successful stint with the Mumbai Indians, Chennai Super Kings and was with the Gujarat Lions from the 2016 season. 15. Chaminda Vass (Photo Source: Getty Images) Chaminda Vass is one of the greatest bowlers Sri Lanka produced. The medium pacer was a brainy bowler and out-smart the batsmen on most occasions. He was the spearhead of the Deccan Chargers bowling attack. Chaminda went on to play county cricket for 3 more years before retiring in 2012. He was hired as the Sri Lanka bowling consultant in 2016. 16. Adam Gilchrist (Photo Source: Getty Images) Adam Gilchrist was the spine of Deccan Chargers team. He led them to their only title in 2009. He was the one who gave the team this belief that they could win the title. Gilly retired from international cricket in 2008 and played IPL until 2013. One of the best wicketkeeper-batsmen to have ever played the game Gilchrist is now contracted as a commentator in the Big Bash League. Here is the whole squad of Deccan Chargers who won the IPL in 2009: Adam Gilchrist (C) (wk), Andrew Symonds, Herschelle Gibbs, Scott Styris, VVS Laxman, Manvinder Bisla, Harmeet Singh, Venugopal Rao, Ryan Harris, Chaminda Vaas, Pragyan Ojha, Rohit Sharma, Azhar Bilakhia, Nuwan Zoysa, Fidel Edwards, Tirumalasetti Suman, Dwayne Smith, Harladar Das, Jaskaran Singh, Doddapaneni Kalyankrishna, Sarvesh Kumar, Chamara Silva, RP Singh, Padikalva Vijaykumar, Arjun Yadav, Shoaib Ahmed, Dwarka Ravi Teja, Abhinav Kumar.

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2009 IPL Champions- Deccan Chargers: Where are they now?

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