Another edition of the Indian Premier League has passed us by, and it was MS Dhoni’s Chennai Super Kings who won the title in their comeback season.
In it’s eleventh year, a total of 149 cricketers took part in the Indian Premier League. However, there were 39 others, including a handful of international players, who had to be content with just being onlookers or drinks-carriers. These cricketers did not get the chance to play even a single match.
Here’s a look at five of those players, who were signed by IPL teams, but did not get an opportunity in IPL 2018.
1. Gurkeerat Mann (Delhi Daredevils, Rs 75 Lakh)
Gurkeerat Singh Mann is one of only three India internationals to not get an outing in IPL 2018. He bats in the middle order and bowls part-time off-spin, not to ignore the fact that he is an excellent fielder too.
The all-rounder from Punjab, who has represented India in three ODIs and was on an occasion or two named in the Indian Test squad, had a base price of Rs 50 lakh and was signed up by the Delhi Daredevils for a fee of Rs 75 lakh.
The Daredevils used as many as 22 different players through the course of IPL 2018 —offering debuts to teenagers and even persisting with a woefully out-of-form Glenn Maxwell; but there was still be no opportunity for Gurkeerat.
The 27-year-old was with Kings XI Punjab for five seasons between 2012 and 2017. He made his India international debut in January 2016, but even after claiming the India cap, he featured in only nine of the KXIP’s 28 matches in the 2016 and 2017 seasons.
In the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy T20 competition held just prior to the IPL Auction 2018, Gurkeerat had featured in nine games for his state side Punjab, scoring 141 runs in eight innings at a strike-rate of 146.87.
2. Jayant Yadav (Delhi Daredevils, Rs 50 Lakh)
Jayant Yadav was one of two India internationals in the Delhi Daredevils squad who did not get a game in IPL 2018. The off-spinner was signed up by the franchise at his base price of Rs 50 lakh at the IPL Auction 2018.
The 28-year-old made his IPL debut for the franchise in 2015, but has turned out in only 10 of the team’s 56 matches in four seasons now.
The off-spinner has played a handful of internationals (four Tests & one ODI) for India, the last of them in February 2017. Earlier this year, in March 2018, he received a Rs 1 crore Grade C Annual contract from the BCCI.
3. Adam Milne (Mumbai Indians)
The Mumbai Indians signed on Adam Milne as a replacement for the injured Pat Cummins. The 26-year-old fast bowler, who has played 19 T20 Internationals for New Zealand, joined up with the franchise in the initial weeks of the IPL season, but did not play a single match. There were 10 cricketers in MI’s 25-strong squad who did not get an outing this season; Milne was one of only two international cricketers in the MI squad not to take the
4. Saurabh Tiwary (Mumbai Indians, Rs 80 Lakh)
Saurabh Tiwary, who had a base price of Rs 50 lakh, was signed up by the Mumbai Indians for Rs 80 lakh at the IPL Player Auction 2018.
The 28-year-old has played for four different franchises in the IPL. He began his IPL journey as an uncapped player in 2008; back then, the Mumbai Indians signed up the teenager who was part of India’s World Cup winning Under-19 team. After spending three years in the MI dressing room, he was bagged by Royal Challengers Bangalore in IPL 2011 for a whopping fee of $1.6 million (approximately Rs 7 crore).
After three underwhelming seasons with RCB, he was then signed up by the Delhi Daredevils in 2014 for a fee of Rs 70 lakh, but did not take the field that season because of a shoulder injury. In 2015, he did a modest job for DD, scoring 109 runs and remaining unbeaten in each of the six time he batted.
In 2016, he turned out for the Rising Pune Supergiants, for whom he scored half-centuries in losing causes twice. In 2017, he represented Mumbai Indians, scoring 52 in his only outing against the Kolkata Knight Riders.
In the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy T20 competition just prior to the IPL Player Auction 2018, Tiwary played 8 matches for Jharkhand, in which he scored 123 runs at a strike-rate of 106.95.
5. Dushmantha Chameera (Rajasthan Royals, Rs 50 Lakh)
Dushmantha Chameera was only one of two Sri Lankan players to be picked by the IPL franchises to play in the 2018 season. A fast bowler still finding his footing in international cricket, Chameera was offered his first taste of IPL when he was signed up by the Rajasthan Royals at his base price of Rs 50 lakh.
The 26-year-old would be one of only two overseas internationals to not get a single outing.
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