9 Players Who Once Ruled The IPL But Have No Takers Now

Joshua Arpit Nath
Joshua Arpit Nath
Updated on Dec 16, 2015, 16:26 IST-1.5 K Shares
Munaf Singh RP Singh

They were once the biggest asset to their Indian Premier League sides. Their uniqueness made them indispensable and they had carved a niche for themselves. Either as one-season wonders or performing in sporadic matches over couple of seasons, these cricketers have now fell by the wayside and pretty much forgotten.

1. RP Singh

RP Singh

Cricinfo

RP Singh, touted to be the best thing to have happened to Indian fast bowling since Zaheer Khan, he was a fast riser in international cricket. He had an excellent release position while delivering the ball and got the ball to swing and seam on helpful wickets. After impressing in 2007 World T20 and tours to England (2007) and Australia (2007-08), RP slowly started to lose his international spot but IPL it seems became his true calling. A consistent performer for the Deccan Chargers, RP was one of the pillars of the side during their 2009 title triumph taking the purple cap with 23 wickets that season. He was picked up by Kochi Tuskers Kerala in 2011, from where he went to Mumbai Indians in 2012 and played his last full season for the Royal Challengers Bangalore in 2013. He went unsold in 2014 and 2015. Easily an IPL heavyweight with 87 scalps, RP is now not a popular choice for franchises and only plays domestic cricket.  

2. Swapnil Asnodkar

Swapnil Asnodkar

BCCL

One of the few cricketers from Goa to make a mark in the IPL, Asnodkar reminded cricket followers of diminutive Sri Lankan opener and wicketkeeper Romesh Kaluwitharana. His attacking batting and no-holds-barred approach with the bat in hand was his USP for the Rajasthan Royals in the inaugural edition when he scored 311 runs in 9 games. However, a poor second season (98 runs in 8 T20s) in South Africa resulted in his slide. He played just three games in 2010 and 2011 and never returned to the limelight.

3. Shadab Jakati

Shadab Jakati

BCCL

He rose from obscurity, coming from Goa, to be one of the main performers for Chennai Super Kings in the second and third editions of the IPL when he took 13 wickets in each seasons. His performances dipped in the fourth and fifth seasons and he found no takers in the 2013 auction and played just one game for RCB in 2014. Jakati has been confined to domestic cricket for Goa in recent times.

4. Paul Valthaty

Paul Valthaty

BCCL

Bombay-born Paul Valthaty played a couple of games for Rajasthan Royals in 2009 but impressed only for Kings XI Punjab in 2011. He was picked for the side after catching the eye in Mumbai’s limited-overs circuit. Valthaty surprised one and all by hitting 463 runs for KXIP that season (one century, two fifties) and taking 7 wickets. However, a poor 2012 season (30 runs in 6 games) led to his downturn and he played his final IPL game in 2013.

5. Kamran Khan

Kamran Khan with Shane Warne

AFP

Yet another teen sensation to rise from anonymity, Kamran joined the Rajasthan Royals after impressing the support staff with his raw pace. He could bowl up to speeds of 140kmph and beyond and trouble the batsmen with this slinging action which was hard to pick. RR skipper Shane Warne was all praise for the left-armer. He won RR a game in the Super Over in the 2009 edition. Overall he took 9 wickets in as many IPL games and played his last for the Pune Warriors in 2011. He went on to make his first-class debut in Sri Lanka, playing for Colts Cricket Club in 2013.

6. Munaf Patel

Munaf Patel

BCCL

Much like his India chances, his IPL performance also dipped after consistent showing in the first five seasons of the IPL. He was the pillar of strength for the Rajasthan Royals in the first two seasons, taking 30 wickets. In 2011, he signed up with Mumbai Indians and was a boon for them as well, taking 37 wickets in two seasons before fading away in 2013. He went unsold in 2014 and 2015.  

7. Siddharth Trivedi

Sid Trivedi

BCCL

An old war horse for the Rajasthan Royals, Siddharth Trivedi an early bloomer in domestic cricket, earned heaps of praise from Shane Warne in the inaugural edition of the IPL. A total of 65 wickets over six seasons of IPL may not be most threatening but they aren’t the worst figures either. 13 wickets each in his first and sixth season, Trivedi was always the go-to bowler for the Rajasthan captain. However, in the 2013 IPL spot-fixing scandal he failed to alert the authorities regarding an approach from a bookie and was banned for a year.

8. T Suman

T Suman

BCCL

Tirumalasetti Laxminarayana Suman came into limelight by playing cameos for Deccan Chargers in their victorious campaign in the second edition in South Africa. Next year he bettered his 243 runs in 2009 with 307 in 2010 after he made good use of the chances to bat higher up the order. His consistency helped him get a contract with Mumbai Indians for the next two seasons, but it didn't work out for him as his form started to subside. In 2013, he managed to get a contract with Pune Warriors but failed miserably, scoring just 52 runs in 7 games. That was his last season and he failed to find buyers in subsequent editions.

9. Venugopal Rao

 Venugopal Rao

BCCL

A consistent performer at the local level for Andhra, Venugopal Rao couldn’t seize the moment when it came to international cricket. He got another chance in the IPL, and it was in 2011 for the Delhi Daredevils he showed his full prowess, scoring 288 runs in an otherwise abysmal season for the team. After that he struggled to come up with strong performances and remained a fringe player since. His last IPL game was for Sunrisers Hyderabad in 2014 and now plays domestic cricket for Gujarat.