Faded Indian Premier League XI

From the last 12 years, the Indian Premier League (IPL) has been a customary maze for the cricketing talents around the globe. Various budding cricketers have solved this puzzle and reached their final destination, International circuit. The acclaimed superstars of the game have also steered their careers to the path of success after crossing this labyrinth. At the start, the maze, the league looks simple and easy, but sometimes it gets convoluted for the players, as they reach dead-ends after a couple of wrong turns.

The most celebrated T20 league of the world, IPL has always provided the fans and cricketers with tons of memorable moments. In every season a bunch of unknown players become household names in a matter of 14 games. Here performances of many stars have caught the attention of the audience, but in order to retain the fame, they have to be consistent in their trade. In IPL a talent can shine like a polished gem, but he can also fade away quickly like a morning star.

Here is the best XI of the players who were once a part of the Indian Premier League but faded away with the time:

1) Manvinder Bisla

The keeper-batsman from Haryana was one of the stars for KKR when they lifted the title for the first time in 2012. Manvinder Bisla shot to fame in a matter of 20 overs, as he scored a 48-ball 89, and surprised everybody with his hitting skills in the IPL final against the Chennai Super Kings (CSK). Very few people know that Bisla was also present in the dugout when Deccan Chargers won the trophy in 2009. In his 7-year IPL career, he has been part of 4 franchises and has played 39 matches in which he has scored 758 runs.

In 2012, the man from Haryana was not an automatic choice for the KKR skipper Gautam Gambhir. Brendon McCullum’s patchy from saw Bisla get 7 games to prove his worth, and he scored 213 runs. The right-hander became a regular in the 2013 season but failed to deliver on his promise and soon the franchise released him, and then he was traded to RCB in 2015 IPL where he played a single game.

Fast-forward to 2019, he has been doing commentary in the IPL and before that, for a couple of seasons, he played in Dhaka Premier League.

2) Swapnil Asnodkar

The batsman from Goa was one of the finds in the inaugural season of IPL. In 2008, the Rajasthan franchise gave the opening duties to Asnodkar, and he didn’t disappoint as he and the South African legend Graeme Smith accumulated 418 runs at the top with an average of 59. The short-statured player was an unsung hero of Royal’s victorious campaign. Asnodkar was a good player and in his 4-year IPL career, he played 26 games in which he scored 423 runs.

Swapnil Asnodkar stroked a 34-ball 60 in his debut match against KKR. The right-hander became an instant hit, as he scored 244 runs in 7 ties with a strike rate of 127. Swapnil was expecting bigger things in the following season, but a finger injury kept him out of the initial games and when returned he just scored 98 runs in 8 games. After 2009, he just played 3 IPL matches. Asnodkar continued his passion for the game by playing Ranji matches for his home team, but this year he was again dropped in order to inject new talents to the side.

3) George Bailey (c)

The Australian cricketer has plied his trade in various T20 leagues and has been a successful player across the globe. In 2009, the Chennai franchise fished him out in the auction, but due to the presence of innumerable superstars, George Bailey just played 4 games in 4 seasons. The Tasmanian was bagged by the Kings XI Punjab (KXIP) in 2014 where he captained the side for 2 years. In his 7-year IPL career, Bailey has represented 3 franchises and has played 40 matches in which he has scored 660 runs.

Due to his calm-headed personality, Bailey was given the leadership duties by the Punjab team in 2014 and he guided the team to the finals which is their best run in the tournament till date. The right-hander scored around 500 runs down the order in 2 seasons, and also played an anchor role in crucial ties.

In 2015, the team ended up with a wooden spoon and as a result, he was released by the franchise where he was picked up by RPS. Bailey represented them for half a dozen games, but in the following season he was again dropped, and now he is serving as an expert in the Star Sports show Dugout.

4) Venugopal Rao

Venugopal Rao has a unique record to his name, as he was the first Indian “super sub” in ODI cricket. In the first edition of IPL, the Hyderabad batsman was picked up by his home franchise Deccan Chargers. He scored around 400 runs in 2 seasons as a middle-order batsman, and in 2009 he was part of the playing XI which lifted the trophy in South Africa. Venugopal is an experienced campaigner and in his IPL tourney, he has played 65 matches scoring 1000 runs for three franchises.

During his stint with the Hyderabad franchise, he showed his finishing skills. But after a mediocre 2010 season, he was released which prompted the Delhi team to rope him. The short-statured player had his best season of IPL while playing for Delhi Daredevils (now Capitals), as he accumulated 336 runs in 14 innings.

In 2014 he was again picked up by the Hyderabad team where he had a terrible season with 70 runs in 7 ties and as a result, was dropped for the following season. Rao continued his cricketing journey by playing the first-class games, and recently he joined politics where he is a member of the Jana Sena party.

5) Naman Ojha (wk)

The keeper-batsman from Madhya Pradesh is a star who even went on to represent the Men in Blue after his IPL heroics. Naman Ojha had the power game, and it was on show during his 2009 season where he scored two quick-half-centuries donning the RR jersey. Ojha was a capable middle-order batsman, and his work behind the stumps was also commendable. He was on the IPL bus for 10 long years playing for fours and has played 113 matches in which he has scored over 1500 runs.

Rajasthan released him during the mega-auction of 2011 where he was snapped up by the Delhi for Rs 1.24 crores, but the price tag affected Ojha’s game and had four mediocre seasons. In 2014 IPL auction he was picked up by Sunrisers where he played the role of a finisher for three seasons and played useful cameos down the order.

This prompted Delhi to again rope him for the 2018 season for a whopping Rs 1.4 Crore. The team from the north just utilized him for one game where he scored a solitary run and was released in the following season. Lately, Ojha has been grinding out in the domestic circuit.

6) Saurabh Tiwary

Saurabh Tiwary was one of the stars of India’s 2008 U19 World Cup winning campaign and immediately after his heroics, he was picked up by the Mumbai franchise in the first ever IPL auction. Due to Mumbai’s star-studded cast, Tiwary didn’t get many opportunities in his first 2 seasons. In 2010 Saurabh showcased his potential by scoring 419 runs in 16 innings with a strike rate of 136, and the league also witnessed his hard-hitting abilities. The southpaw played a total of 10 seasons in which he has scored 1276 runs in 81 matches.

The cricketer from Jamshedpur played as a middle-order batsman for 4 franchises. Saurabh was roped in by RCB in the 2011 auction, but after 3 mediocre years with them, he was released in 2014 and then he was picked by the Delhi team. He flattered to deceive again, and in 2016, Tiwary was added to the RPS squad where he played 10 games and scored only 170 runs.

In the following year, the left-hander returned to the Mumbai squad, and in 2 years he played a single tie scoring only a half-century against KKR. In 2019 he was released from the team, and now he has been trying out his luck in domestic cricket with Jharkhand.

7) James Faulkner

The all-rounder from Australia can change the course of a match with his skillful bowling and power hitting. James Faulkner was picked up by the Pune franchise in 2011 IPL auctions but only played a single game. In the next year’s auction Faulkner was added to the Punjab squad, but there also he played a couple of ties. The Tasmanian flourished in the league when he was roped by the Rajasthan franchise in 2013, and in his 7-year IPL career, he has played 60 matches in scalping 59 wickets.

In the 6th edition of the league, RR was able to make it to the playoffs because of his heroics, as he took 28 wickets in 16 matches with an economy rate of 6.76. He had an average IPL in the next two years when the all-rounder took 20 wickets in 2 seasons due to which he was released from the squad. In 2016 the Gujarat Lions roped him in and he leaked runs while bowling for them. The all-rounder didn’t attract a buyer for the IPL 2018, as he lost his place in the national set-up and now he is trying to rediscover himself by playing in the domestic circuit.

8) Pragyan Ojha

The left-arm spinner from Hyderabad has a page after him in IPL’s history books. His contributions to the league are invaluable. Pragyan Ojha started his IPL career with Deccan Chargers, and immediately he became an integral part of the team with his wicket-taking abilities. In 2009 season’s final, he guided his side to the victory lane by bowling a match-winning spell of 3/28 in 4 overs and till date, he is the only tweaker to bag a purple cap. He plied his trade for 8 years representing two franchises, and he picked up 89 wickets in 92 ties.

After 3 good seasons, Ojha was retained by the franchise in the 2011 IPL auction and they had to shell 23 million for him, but his form dipped in that year. The franchise dropped him for the following season and was instantly snapped by the Mumbai team. In 2013 Mumbai won their first IPL title, and one of their heroes was Ojha picking up 16 wickets in as many games with an economy rate of 7.28.

The spinner’s career struck a roadblock when he was barred from bowling in 2014, as his action was found to be illegal. Ojha was never as effective with the remodelled action and now he is finding his feet again in the first class cricket.

9) Kevon Cooper

The Caribbean island has always supplied some great talents to IPL, and one of them has to be Kevon Cooper. Cooper caught the attention of the world with stellar performances in CPL 2011, and the Rajasthan franchise picked him up in the 2012 IPL auction. In his debut match, he showed his potential by scalping four wickets, but his IPL stint was cut short to 6 games after suffering a serious knee injury. Cooper played in 3 IPL seasons in which he picked up 33 wickets in 25 games.

The all-rounder was one the stars for the Royals in 2013 season. In a short span of time, the player from the island nation became famous as he used to outfox many batsmen with his variations. Cooper continued his IPL saga in 2014 as he scalped 4 wickets in 5 matches, but in a match against Mumbai, he was suspected of illegal bowling action by the officials.

In 2015 RR dropped the Windies talent, due to the uncertainties surrounding him. After that, he has been playing in various T20 competitions, and recently he was also a part of the Bengal Tigers team in the T-10 league.

10) Kamran Khan

The Uttar Pradesh left-arm pacer was first noticed by David Berry, who used to be a coach in RR camp. The Rajasthan franchise bagged him in the 2009 IPL auction for a hefty price, and he impressed everybody with his whippy action. Kamran Khan was the first bowler to bowl a super over in IPL, and he turned to be a hero in that match as the Shane Warne-led side won the game. The speedster just played 9 games and he represented 2 franchises in his IPL career.

Kamran was nicknamed as “Tornado” because of his pace, and he played 5 games in his first season where he picked up 6 wickets which included a 3-wicket haul against KKR. In the following season, he just played 3 games and his action was deemed suspicious. He was sent to Australia in order to work on his bowling action, and thereafter he was dropped by the franchise.

In 2011 the pacer was roped by the Pune franchise but played a single tie in 2 seasons, and he was released in 2013. After that, he played domestic cricket for UP, and of late he has been trading his skills in Hyderabad club cricket.

11) Dirk Nannes

Dirk Nannes was an outstanding fast bowler who never intended to be a cricketer. The left-arm pacer was roped by the Delhi franchise after his heroics for Middlesex in the domestic T20 Cup. Nannes can generate raw pace on any surface, and he proved his wicket-taking expertise in his first IPL season where he picked up 15 wickets in 13 matches with an economy rate of 7.80. In his 4-year IPL career, Dirk played for 3 teams and in total, he scalped 29 wickets in as many games.

After his success in 2009, the Victorian speedster became the spearhead for Gautam Gambhir‘s men in IPL 2010  but he didn’t rise to the occasion, as he just took 7 wickets in 9 games, and the team was not able to qualify for the playoffs. In 2011, Nannes was snapped by the Bangalore franchise, but he missed it after playing a couple of games owing to a side strain.

The pacer was bagged by the Chennai franchise in 2012 where he played 5 games and after that, he was released in the following season. Nannes traded his skills around the globe, and in 2015 he became a member of ABC’s commentary team. Recently he was a commentator for the 2018 Winter Olympics as well.

Get the latest Cricket News and updates from the Indian Premier League (IPL), Match Predictions, Fantasy Cricket Tips and lots more on CricTracker.com.