Last Updated on 5 years by Charbel Coorey
The Indian Premier League (IPL) is the biggest T20 extravaganza. Apart from entertaining the fans across the world, it provides opportunities to so many talents to show their brilliance on the global stage and create their own brand in T20 cricket.
So, it is the dream of so many cricketers to play in the most luxurious T20 league and prove their worth in the format. But, there are some well known cricketers who are yet to be seen in the IPL. I will be listing such five cricketers in this article. Let’s go.
5. Ashton Agar
The Australian bowling all-rounder has gained enormous praise recently for his consistency with the ball. His straight forward methods of keeping things accurate and vary his pace as well as length has worked well for him. Debuting in 2016, he has picked 30 wickets from 27 T20Is at an economy of 6.88, which is quite remarkable.
Also, he is a capable batsman down under and has enough experience of playing the shortest format of the game being a regular in domestic leagues like BBL. But, unfortunately he has not been able to attract the IPL franchises so far, in the auctions he has been a part of. Looking at Agar, the improved bowler in recent times, I hope he gets an opportunity in the IPL soon.
4. Mushfiqur Rahim
The stats of Mushfiqur Rahim in T20Is don’t do justice to his calibre as a batsman at all. He is a wonderful timer of the ball, a prolific player under pressure, handles spinners as well as anyone in the middle overs and thus is a perfect contender for that vital no. 4 spot in a t20 side.
Over the last 2-3 years, he has gained a calmer head and has rescued Bangladesh from difficult situations on many occasions. In T20 format, he has decent average and SR of almost 29 and 130 respectively. Moreover, his experience of playing in the subcontinent can make him a vital cog in the middle order of any team in the IPL. Despite being a quality option, he has been unable to attract bidders for him in the IPL auctions so far, which is a bit strange.
3. Joe Root
Can you imagine one of the finest batsmen of this generation, a proven customer in limited overs cricket, not getting a single bid for his name in the IPL auction so far? That is the curious case of Joe Root. He has been a superstar of English limited overs side for so many years now. In T20s, he has average and SR of almost 32 and 128 respectively, which is decent as far as an anchor is concerned. Moreover, in the T20 World Cup held in India in 2016, he had an average of almost 50 and scored at a phenomenal Strike rate of 146.47 and thus played a major role in England reaching the Final.
He is a brilliant player of spin, which is a crucial criterion to be successful as a batsman in India. Yet, I don’t understand why a player of his calibre has not been picked by any side in the IPL auctions.
2. Kesrick Williams
Kesrick Williams belongs to that rare breed of fast bowlers who can fetch wickets for a side in the shortest format. He has great variations in his armory. Having made his debut in 2016 for the West Indies, he has picked 41 wickets in 25 games so far in T20Is. Also, overall in the t20 format, he has 129 wickets bowling in 95 games, which speaks volumes for his wicket-taking abilities.
He has shown his potential with the ball by nailing perfect yorkers and brilliant slow balls at the death and he was effective even against a monstrous hitter like Russell in the recently concluded CPL. Sure, his economy rate is a bit high at 8.6, but it is quite understandable as he is preferred more at the death. So, I consider him as a quality option suited for T20 cricket. But, unfortunately he has not been bought by any franchise in the IPL so far, where every team needs a death-overs specialist.
1. Adil Rashid
Adil Rashid has been the trump card of captain Eoin Morgan for some 4-5 years now and has played a remarkable role in England’s success as a world class limited overs side. As a genuine wicket taker, Rashid has 199 wickets in T20 format altogether from 176 games. He has troubled the best in business including the likes of Virat Kohli on numerous occasions. A wrist spinner like Rashid on helpful Indian wickets can surely be a luxury to have for any side. The extent to which the teams prioritize an able wrist spinner in limited overs cricket, especially T20s these days, it is really shocking to see one of the finest wrist spinners of the current generation not getting an IPL contract.
So, this is my list of 5 popular players those are yet to get an IPL contract. Do any others come to your mind? Have your say!
Written by Debashish Sarangi. Follow Debashish on Twitter today.
