If you’ve been missing the cricket, fear not, for the Indian Premier League’s Season 8 begins this month on April 8.
Many of the stars of the just-concluded World Cup will be seen in action. But there will also be those who flopped in the mega-tournament.
Here are 6 international World Cup flops who could be stars this Indian summer.
Chris Gayle
Chris Gayle blitzed a 215 against Zimbabwe in the World Cup but the Trinidadian wasn’t consistent enough for the West Indies.
But when it comes to the IPL, Gayle owns almost all major batting records – fastest century, most hundreds and the highest individual score of 175.
Shakib Al Hasan
The Bangladeshi star had a very ordinary World Cup, both with the ball and with the bat. He scored 196 runs in six matches and picked up only 8 wickets.
However, he was instrumental in Kolkata Knight Riders’ victorious campaign last year with a batting average of 32. He also picked up 11 wickets. Watch out for him in KKR’s season opener against Mumbai Indians.
Thisara Perera
Thisara Perera turned in a dismal performance in the World Cup. His 47 against Afghanistan pushed up his batting average to 20. The all-rounder could only manage 6 wickets.
However, he was critical for Kings XI Punjab in IPL 2014 which helped the team reach the finals. He picked up 19 wickets in 16 matches and scored at a strike rate of over 140. He could be a handy finisher at No. 5 for the team in IPL 2015.
Aaron Finch
A controversial addition to this list given that he scored 135 against England and 81 against India. However, he was scratchy even in his admittedly match-winning innings against India and couldn’t convert starts given that he opened the innings for Australia.
But in the IPL for the last couple of years, Finch has been exceptional for Mumbai Indians having replaced Sachin Tendulkar as the opener. With an average of 32, he has scored six 60s giving the team the solid start when they go out to bat.
Dwayne Smith
With a batting average of 15 in the World Cup, Smith was definitely a major disappointment the West Indies but for Chennai Super Kings he has been a clinical batsman. Smith has a batting average of more than 30 in the IP alongside an explosive strike rate of 133. Last year, he scored 416 runs in 16 matches, with five 50s and an average of over 35.
Eoin Morgan
It isn’t fair to criticise the English captain when the rest of the team was equally bad, especially the humiliation at the hands of Bangladesh in a must-win match. 90 runs in six matches and a strike rate of 64 paints a sad picture for such a talented cricketer.
But under Gautam Gambhir’s captaincy, this Kolkata Knight Riders middle-order batsman has played a crucial role. His consistent and quick 30s and 40s have helped the team on several occasions. So don’t write him off just yet. He is a welcome addition to the Sunrisers Hyderabad team, this year.
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