IPL: 5 cricketers who gradually faded away

The Indian Premier League (IPL) is a make or break platform for many of the youngsters these days and Indian cricket has benefitted immensely from this. The T20 tournament provides the perfect platform for the deserving youngsters to showcase their game and make their case for an international debut. Hardik Pandya, Jasprit Bumrah and Ravi Ashwin are some of the exceptional gifts from the IPL to Indian cricket.

At the same time, many one season wonders led us to believe that they may come for more in the upcoming editions of the prestigious and cash-rich championship but that never happened and unknowingly, they faded away from our memories and have been exceptionally replaced by some fresh faces. We have now prepared a list of top 5 IPL players who faded away gradually. Let’s have a look at it.

Paul Valthaty

Paul Valthaty was an eye-opening sensation back in 2011, who shot into limelight when he smashed the CSK bowlers all around the park en route to a 63-ball 120. Not only did he help Kings XI Punjab (KXIP) seal the victory but also ensured that his stupendous knock remained as the highest score of the season. However, injuries have always been a part of Paul’s career and not to forget, erratic performances too.

His inconsistency coupled with his fitness was a major issue for the teams and consequently, he lost out on a contract in the cash-rich league post 2013 and to make things worse, Paul last featured in a One Dayer for Air India in 2014 and since then, he has been featuring in local cricket competitions to make his ends meet. Valthaty’s innings of 120 will forever be etched in the minds of every true cricket fan but it hurts to accept the fact that, after that one season, all he did was fade away.

Unmukt Chand

Touted as the next big thing in Indian cricket, Unmukt Chand was popular than some of the international cricketers even before he made his debut. Chand shot into the limelight when he smashed an unbeaten century against a mighty Australian bowling attack in the U19 WC final of 2012 at the Tony Ireland Stadium in Townsville.

Not to forget, he was the skipper of the team as well and being from the same state as Virat Kohli, who was already well established in the international circuit by then, comparisons were inevitable and that just added to the hype surrounding him.

Subsequently, the young Chand was a hot property in the IPL auctions but he never really got going despite playing on good batting wickets at the Wankhede and Feroz Shah Kotla. His poor form led to his eventual axing and he last featured in an IPL game back in 2016. The 26-year-old is currently working on regaining his form in order to make his international debut.

Manvinder Bisla

If the departure of Brendon McCullum from KKR in 2011 left everyone shell-shocked, the fact that an inexperienced youngster replacing him as the first choice keeper only added to it. Playing his debut season, Bisla looked at the comfort and so much so, he handed his team a victory in the 2012 IPL finals against a strong Chennai set-up with a fabulous 89 off just 48 deliveries.

Many expected Bisla to capitalise on his form in the next season as well but he couldn’t and thus, was unable to make his much-awaited international debut. A see-ball, hit-ball type batsman, Bisla couldn’t find consistency in his game and he couldn’t find himself another IPL contract post the 2015 season. His smooth inning in the 2012 finals is still potent enough to give everyone goosebumps. A part of the journey is the end and Bisla has faded away.

Rajat Bhatia

A slow-bowler coupled with smartness is a deadly combination and Bhatia was a key-wicket taker for the Knight Riders. On a slow and low strip at the Eden Gardens, Bhatia’s slower deliveries were often deceiving. With 71 wickets from 95 games at an economy of 7.41, Bhatia can be regarded as a true veteran of the IPL.

Bhatia played the majority of his IPL cricket for Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) and riding on the back of some impressive stats, he was picked up the Rising Pune Supergiant for the 2016 IPL. However, the 2016 edition wasn’t too kind to Bhatia and subsequently, he was dropped and he hasn’t featured since then. Bhatia’s deceptive deliveries will surely be missed but he can be regarded as the finest example of someone fading into oblivion.

Swapnil Asnodkar

In 2008, a young batsman from Goa walked alongside the mighty Graeme Smith to open the innings for Rajasthan Royals (RR). In 20 games that he featured in, Swapnil could only manage 423 runs at a mediocre strike rate of 124.78 (as an opener). Asnodkar’s game was always going to blow hot and cold and with his consistency not up to the mark, he failed to appear in the subsequent seasons of the IPL post 2009.

Although he did play for Goa in the first-class cricket, he never really got going. To make the matters worse for him, his name was involved in a match-fixing scandal and even though he did come out of it not proven guilty, the franchises never showed any interest in him post 2009 and his partnerships with Smith at the top of the order is still a golden memory. Asnodkar has slowly faded away from the limelight.

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