IPL 2021: Unused XI of the tournament

The Indian Premier League has been an integral part of every fan’s calendar. For the last two years, mostly the tournament has been conducted in the UAE. This time, fans have witnessed the re-emergence of the Chennai Super Kings. During the thirteenth edition of the IPL, they failed to make it to the playoffs for the first time. The franchise and the fans were disappointed. Everyone had thought that they need mega auctions to change things around. Well, they did, and this time, CSK was not the only team. KKR too became a powerhouse. Adding on, RCB utilized Maxwell excellently. However, few talented players were unused. They might, however, find themselves in a different franchise. Let us have a look at the unused IPL of the tournament- Unused XI of IPL 2021 1. Shreevats Goswami (wicketkeeper) Shreevats Goswami. (Photo: Surjeet Yadav/IANS) The winner of the inaugural Emerging Player of the Tournament award, Shreevats Goswami had a brilliant U19 World Cup in 2008. But, since then, he failed to capitalize on his talent as a poor form both with the bat and gloves meant that, he had to sit out of the IPL circuit from 2013 to 2017. He has been a regular member of the domestic circuit. But, a national call-up became a far-fetched dream for Goswami. Since 2018, he has been a part of the Sunrisers Hyderabad but Saha’s presence meant that he had to warm the benches. In the 2018 season of the IPL, he scored 52 runs in 6 innings. Later on, in 2020, he was not off the mark even once. With the addition of two new teams, everyone is hoping to see more of Goswami. 2. N Jagadeesan Narayan Jagadeesan. (Photo Source: IPL.BCCI) N Jagadeesan has been with the CSK since the eleventh season. There is no doubt that until and unless MS Dhoni decides to retire from the IPL, he will have to warm the benches at CSK. However, with the mega action coming up, he might get a chance to represent a new franchise. Jagadeesan has played 35 T20s in his career. With 702 runs to his name and the highest score of 78, he has shown that he could be an asset in this format. But, he has been unlucky in the IPL till now. A strike rate of 125.35 shows that he has the potential to improve himself in the shortest format of the game. Adding on, his average is 35.10, which is quite solid. Hence, Jagadeesan should be given regular chances in the IPL. 3. Sam Billings(captain) Sam Billings celebrates his fifty. (Photo Source: IPL/BCCI) Sam Billings was a part of the CSK squad in 2018. During that season, he played 10 games and scored 108 runs. Against the Kolkata Knight Riders, he scored a match-winning 56 at Chennai. But, post-2018, he has played only a single game. Well, that is concerning, this is because he is a talented batsman who is failing to make an impact in the toughest T20 league. Ahead of the 2021 season, he was bought by the Delhi Capitals for INR 2 crore. Still, he could not make it to the playing eleven. Sam is a wicketkeeper as well, so he could have been a great addition to the playing eleven for the Delhi Capitals. Adding on, his experience as a skipper for Kent also adds more feathers to his cap. This makes him the captain of his squad. 4. Sheldon Jackson Sheldon Jackson. (Photo Source: Instagram) Just like Jagadeesan, Sheldon Jackson is another batsman who has not played a single IPL game this year. He managed to play 4 matches in the 2017 season, but he could not make an impact. However, he has improved as a player since then. He was very close to getting a national call-up earlier this year. But, the selectors overlooked him. In the IPL, he has a strike rate of 122.58, which can improve if he gets more chances. Talking about fitness, Jackson is one of the biggest fitness enthusiasts in the country. He often uploads his fitness routines on social media as well. Well, in this playing XI, he takes up a very important number four position. 5. Gurkeerat Singh Gurkeerat Singh. (Photo Source: IPL/BCCI) Gurkeerat Singh is another player in this lineup who has been underused by the franchises for quite some time. During the mid-2010s, he was so consistent with the bat that he earned a national callup. However, he was used for just three games. In T20 cricket, Singh has scored 1829 runs at an average of 24.38. Their highest score of 93 shows that he can play impactful innings. But, his strike rate is at the lower 120s, hence, he has been in and out of the franchises. Talking about his IPL stats, Singh has played 41 IPL games so far. With the highest score of 65, he has managed to accumulate 511 runs. But, he can improve as a player. In the longer formats, he has much better stats. So, he plays the role of the anchor in this team. 6. Ben Cutting Ben Cutting. (Photo Source: IPL/BCCI) Ben Cutting is an impactful T20 all-rounder who has been a part of different franchises over the years. It is a shame that he has represented his nation in just 7 games. If he had got more chances, then Australia would have found the perfect replacement for Shane Watson. Cutting has played 21 IPL games so far. With most of them being for SRH, and he had produced a match-winning performance against RCB in the final of the 2016 season. Because of his effort, SRH managed to post a decent total which they defended successfully in the final. He has a strike rate of 168.79 in the IPL. Well, for a batsman in the middle order, that is an excellent number. Adding on, he can bowl a few overs as an extra seamer as well. Therefore, he makes it to the team as one of the premier all-rounders. 7. Mitchell Santner Mitchell Santner. (Photo Source: IPL/BCCI) When he joined CSK, Santner was the number one bowler in the format. But, MS Dhoni opted for the services of Curran and Bravo, and hence, Santner could play only 6 games in three seasons. He has been underutilized. During his first season, he smashed a six off Ben Stokes to win the game for Chennai. However, after that, he was rarely featured in the playing eleven. In 2019, he played just four games and picked 4 wickets at an impressive rate of 6.71 runs per over. Later on, he was included in the side in 2020 when his team was knocked out of the tournament. In this edition of the IPL, he was not given a single game. Well, he might get regular chances at another franchise. 8. Dominic Drakes Dominic Drakes. (Photo by Randy Brooks – CPL T20/Getty Images) There is a surplus of talented all-rounders in the West Indies cricketing circuit. They have so much potential that they can bat till the number eleven batter. And with the emergence of major T20 leagues, their bench strength is boosting. Here we have Dominic Drakes, a youngster who made the headlines after putting up a match-winning effort of 48 runs in 24 balls. As a result of which St Kitts went on to win the CPL. This was a stellar effort as they were on the verge of losing the game. Adding on, Drakes is a handy bowler as well. Even though his economy rate is 8.97, he can bowl his full quota of four overs when required. Apart from that, a batting strike rate of 159.37 showcases his big-hitting abilities. This number eight position suits well for someone who can swing the bat from the word go. Hence, Drakes occupies this position as a batting allrounder. 9. Krishnappa Gowtham Krishnappa Gowtham. (Photo Source: Instagram/gowthamyadav1) A smart cricketer who can adapt to all conditions, Gowtham was picked up by CSK for a whopping amount of INR 9 crores. But, he was never included in the squad. He was their 12th man in every game and hence, was their premier substitute fielder. Gowtham has been impressive in the domestic circuit. He can hit the ball cleanly and can bowl those handy overs as well. In his IPL career, he has been smashing with a strike rate of 169.09. Hence, this is the reason that the franchises are paying heavy amounts to have him. Having Gowtham at nine is never a bad choice. With an economy of 8.62, he is a good bowler to have at the middle overs. Hopefully, we will get to see more of him in the upcoming seasons. 10. Kuldeep Yadav Kuldeep Yadav of Kolkata Knight Riders celebrates. (Photo by Kuntal Chakrabarty/IANS) Kuldeep Yadav will go down as one of the unluckiest cricketers of the current era. After the 2017 Champions trophy, he was one of the regular members of the national side. But for the past 12 months, he has been out of form. Adding on, whenever he looked like he would pick up a wicket, the fielders dropped catches. This has been his story since last year. To add to his misery, injuries have hampered his chances as well. But, he makes it to this playing XI as a premier spinner. Wrist spinners are always known to pick wickets and hence for this playing eleven, Kuldeep is a must. On his day, he can turn things around in a flash. 11. Umesh Yadav Umesh Yadav. (Photo Source: Instagram/umeshyaadav) Even though consistency is something Umesh Yadav has lacked over the years, he is one bowler who can bowl those “unplayable” deliveries. When on the song, he is a difficult customer to deal with and hence, can be a match-winner. But, for the Capitals, he could not get a single game this season. Pace has never been an issue for Umesh. He can run hard every time he bowls. With the best bowling figure of 4/24, he has shown his abilities with the ball. With the mega auction coming up, we might see more of him. The main reason he was left out was the rise of Avesh Khan. The speedster was consistent throughout and hence was included in most of the games. However, in this lineup, Umesh is a tailender who can swing the bat in any situation as well.

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