5 players who were selected in IPL solely based on their BBL performances

The Big Bash League (BBL) with its new version which saw it’s birth in 2011 has been one of the greatest cricketing festivals. It replaced the T20 Big Bash League that contained six state teams while the rejuvenated version came up with eight city-based franchises. The 2018-19 season of the tournament is set to commence from 19th December. The Australian T20 League has witnessed some swashbuckling batsmen in the T20 arena. The tournament has also seen some of the records being torn apart. Their performances solely in the BBL have led them to snap a million dollar contracts at the Indian Premier League (IPL), which happens to be the biggest T20 league in terms of popularity and monetary value. While some players may have fallen well below of their expectation, a handful of lesser-known players have received recognition in IPL only due to their heroics Down Under. We take a look at some players who were picked up by the IPL teams based on their exploits in BBL 5. Ben Laughlin Ben Laughlin of the Adelaide Strikers celebrates. (Photo by Darrian Traynor/Getty Images) Ben Laughlin may not have been the most expensive buy or the best bowler. At the international circuit, he neither starred nor failed, however, what made him very effective in domestic circuit was his ability to bowl the slower ones and a sharp outswinger which restricted the batsmen relatively to shift gears against him. The Victorian-born medium pace bowler is the highest wicket-taker overall in the BBL. He was part of Hobart Hurricanes from 2011-2014 and picked up the most number of wickets in the 2012-13 season. Since 2014, he has been part of the Adelaide Strikers, who are the current defending champions. The 36-year old was picked up by the Chennai Super Kings for the 2013 season, however, ended his dismal season, having picked up a wicket in two matches. He received his next big IPL break in the last season when he was signed up by the Rajasthan Royals for a base price of Rs 50 lakhs. Laughlin impressed with his deceptive changes, outsmarting the batsmen multiple times. He played in the initial stages of the season and picked up nine wickets in seven matches but had gradually fallen out of favour, with the return of Jofra Archer before being released by the franchise once again. 4. Jofra Archer Jofra Archer. (Photo by Mark Brake/Getty Images) The Barbados-born bowling all-rounder was one of the most exciting cricketers going around before entering the IPL. Archer is capable of fiery spells with utmost accuracy apart from being a useful and an aggressive batsman in the lower order. Jofra Archer started his career from playing for Windies in their U19 team. But he was extremely disappointed after not being picked for the Youth World Cup which led him to leave the Caribbean islands. The 23-year old has a tidy record in the Big Bash League, having picked up 16 scalps in 12 fixtures. His heroics for Hobart Hurricanes enabled him to bag a contract with Rajasthan Royals for INR 7.20 crores. Although he missed the initial part of the season, the speedster had been decisive in the franchise making it to the playoffs. Archer played 10 matches, picking up 15 wickets at a decent average of 21.66 and has been retained by the Royals for the upcoming season. 3. Andrew Tye Andrew Tye. (Photo by Paul Kane/Getty Images) Andrew Tye shot to the limelight through his exemplary performances in Australia‘s T20 extravaganza. Having been part of Perth Scorchers, Tye was the focal contributor in the franchise winning two consecutive titles. In the 2014-15 edition of the BBL, the fast bowler was the fourth highest wicket-taker with 14 wickets from 10 matches. As a result of his exploits, Tye cut a deal with the Gujarat Lions in IPL 2017. He shone in his debut, having picked up a hattrick and five wickets in the match. However, his tenure had been derailed in the tournament because of a shoulder injury. In six matches, the 31-year old emerged as the third highest wicket-taker with 12 wickets. Tye was bagged by Kings XI Punjab in the last season for a mind-boggling price of $1.4 million. He repaid the franchise’s faith equally well by becoming the first Australian bowler to win the purple cap in the lucrative tournament by collecting 24 wickets in 14 matches at an economy rate of 8. Tye’s effective pace-variation in the death overs, his ability to outsmart the batsmen and picking up wickets to choke the opposition has made him one of the best T20 bowlers. 2. Nathan Coulter-Nile Nathan Coulter-Nile. (Photo Source: Twitter) The towering and the burly fast bowler’s career has been plagued by injuries, however, he still hasn’t failed to make the most of his chances. The Western Australian has been with the Perth Scorchers since the start and has been instrumental in them winning two titles. He has repaid the franchise’s faith with 36 wickets from 30 games. Coulter-Nile has played for three franchises in IPL namely Mumbai Indians, Delhi Daredevils and Kolkata Knight Riders. His best performance was in the 2017 season for the Kolkata-based franchise where took 15 wickets in just eight matches. The 31-year old, who is known for using his height to good effect performed exceptionally well in the relatively damp pitches in India. He was bought by the Royal Challengers Bangalore but missed he entire tournament due to the injury. 1. D’arcy Short D’Arcy Short of the Hurricanes celebrates his century. (Photo by Chris Hyde/Getty Images) D’arcy Short was spotted destroying bowling attacks with ease in the Big Bash League last year. He amassed a mammoth 572 runs for Hobart Hurricanes in the 2017-18 season at an average of 57 with a century and four half-centuries. The southpaw’s red-hot form also earned him a spot in Australia’s T20I squad. As such, he was a certainty to spark bidding wars Indian Premier League (IPL) auction and was pouched by the Rajasthan Royals for a price of INR 4 crores. However, he turned out to be the biggest disappointment of the season. The near-invincible and destructive batsman had looked vulnerable and weak against spin bowlers. His highest score of 44 came against the Delhi Daredevils, nevertheless, the overall season from him only produced 115 runs from seven games. Subsequently, he was also released by the franchise ahead of the 2019 season.

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5 players who were selected in IPL solely based on their BBL performances

BBL was the reason for these players to come into the limelight.

2. Nathan Coulter-Nile

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