Chris Gayle, Dwayne Bravo, and AB de Villiers have shined in the Indian Premier League (IPL), the world’s biggest cricket league. More importantly, it has provided talented domestic cricketers with international exposure.
The IPL gave India some big players. Ravichandran Ashwin and Jasprit Bumrah were discovered in their IPL performances.
In IPL 2010, Ashwin showed he could play international cricket for Chennai Super Kings (CSK) under MS Dhoni. He joined the Indian team immediately after his IPL 2010 triumph.
Jasprit Bumrah, who debuted aged 19 for Mumbai Indians in 2013, was also crucial. Since 2014, the team has retained him. Bumrah debuted abroad in 2016.
However, some talented domestic players have struggled to maintain their good play. Some of these homegrown players gained recognition with IPL and played for the national team briefly but subsequently disappeared from international cricket.
Five cricketers whose careers began and finished with IPL:
1. Iqbal Abdullah:
The youthful, slow left-arm orthodox spinner was one of IPL’s best innovations, although he never played for India.
The youngster traveled from Azamgarh, in UP, to Mumbai to play cricket and join the national team. He didn’t get his way. Iqbal Abdullah excelled in domestic leagues due to his lower middle-order batting.
Abdullah was considered for the Indian team after establishing himself in the Under-19 team.
Kolkata Knight Riders was his first IPL team. He won “Rising Star” in his first year. Royal Challengers Bangalore signed him in 2015 for two years.
No team bid on him in 2018. Abdullah, a 2012 IPL champion with KKR, had a disappointing IPL career. He plays Ranji Trophy for Mumbai.
2. Saurabh Tiwary:
Saurabh Tiwary, the left-handed Mahendra Singh Dhoni, started his IPL career well in 2010 with Mumbai Indians.
He scored 429 runs in 16 matches at 29 to help Mumbai Indians reach the tournament final.
In 2011, Royal Challengers Bangalore paid Rs. 8.5 crore for the tall, powerful batter. RCB dropped Tiwart after two poor seasons when he averaged 23.
He played with the Delhi Daredevils, Rising Pune Super Giants, and Mumbai Indians until 2021. He was dismissed for a duck in his last Mumbai match at Sharjah Cricket Stadium in 2021. Since then, Tiwary has not been picked by any team and appears unlikely to play this season.
3. Manvinder Bisla:
After MS Dhoni, Parthiv Patel, and Dinesh Karthik, Bisla is one of the top junior and Indian all-round wicketkeeper batsmen of the recent decade.
In 2012, the right-handed batter’s valiant 89 off 48 balls against Chennai Super Kings in the IPL 2021 final won KKR its first trophy. Bisla stunned the CSK bowlers while chasing 192. The last man in the match was him.
Bisla disappeared after that. Bisla, who debuted in 2009, retired in 2015 after being unsigned.
He plays domestic cricket for Goa instead of the IPL.
4. Pravin Tambe:
Tambe is the oldest IPL player, having debuted at 41. Tambe, a right-handed leg spinner, inspired Rajasthan Royals mentor Rahul Dravid with his rapid leg cutters and variations in the 2013 IPL.
Tambe’s 2013 Rajasthan debut yielded one wicket. He took 15 wickets in 13 matches at 7.26 in the following season.
In 2014, he took a hat-trick against KKR’s top-order hitters and won Man of the Match.
He joined Gujarat Lions (now defunct) at Rs 10 lakh in 2016 and KKR at Rs 20 lakh in 2019.
He even rescinded his 2018 retirement, but then he was suspended from the IPL in 2020 for playing in a T10 league without BCCI permission.
That ended his IPL career.
5. Abhishek Nayar:
Abhishek Nayar was a complete allrounder with good pace and batting. He failed.
He played with Mumbai Indians from 2008-10, Punjab Kings (2011–2012), Pune Warriors India (2013), and Rajasthan Royals (2014). (2014-2015).
Nayar scored 672 runs at 17.68 and grabbed 9 wickets in 60 IPL matches.
Nayar’s best years were with the Mumbai Indians. He played for other teams but was nearly forgotten. He went undrafted at the 2015 auctions.
Nayar is the assistant head coach of the Kolkata Knight Riders right now.
