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The Best Cricketers of Our Time Who Haven't Played in the Indian Premier League (IPL)

Heralded as the greatest domestic cricket tournament in the world, the IPL has had more than its fair share of legendary cricketers playing in the competition. However, a few great players have never had the chance to show off their T20 cricketing ability in the tournament. This list does not take into account Pakistani cricketers, who have been barred from taking part in the league since 2008.

Joe Root:

File:Joe root.jpg - Wikimedia Commons

 Four years ago, Joe Root was the 3rd highest run scorer win the World T20 in India and he seemed imperious in all formats of the game. He is one of the biggest names in world cricket, but an IPL contract has evaded him throughout his career. Many believe his low strike rate is the cause of this and he has admitted that he probably isn’t in England’s best T20 XI.

 Adil Rashid:
File:Adil Rashid (14337811452) (cropped).jpg


A core member of England’s white ball side, he has spun his way to 8th on the ICC’s T20I rankings, but despite his strong performances and desire to play in the IPL he is yet to be picked in the auction. Rashid has managed to take bags of wickets even on flat English pitches suited to pace bowling and would surely thrive on the cracked, dusty Indian grounds, which are very much suited to the spinners. 


Nathan Lyon:

File:Australia captain wicketkeeper Tim Paine and spin bowler ...

Jokingly dubbed the GOAT (Greatest off spinner of all time), Lyon is often viewed as a longer formats bowler and this is probably why he hasn’t been able to pick up an IPL contract. Despite this, he has a very good record in T20 leagues, with an average of 20.51 and an economy rate of below 7.5 runs an over. His ability to flight the ball and press for wickets has made him a deadly bowler in test cricket, but if given the chance he could use his skills to win matches for any IPL side in those crucial middle overs.

Tamim Iqbal:


File:Tamim-Iqbal-wt20.png - Wikimedia Commons

A solid opening batsman with 3 domestic T20 hundreds to his name, Tamim Iqbal has been picked for IPL franchises but has never been given a chance to show his skills on the pitch. Consistent performances at the top of the order have allowed him to rise up the ranks of the cricketing world and he is one of the most elegant players in the game today. Perhaps the only reason he hasn’t played in an IPL game is due to the wealth of quality opening batsmen around the world, but with his talent he could be very successful in the competition.

Ashton Agar:

File:2018.02.03.20.31.23-AUSvNZL T20 NZL innings, SCG-0002 ...

A young Australian spinner who made headlines after he almost took two hat tricks in one match, Agar has risen to number 4 in the ICC T20I bowling rankings, despite the fact that he has often been overlooked by Cricket Australia. He has failed to prove himself in the longer formats but has exceptional T20I stats: an average of 21.28 and an extremely low economy rate of 6.73 runs per over. Once he has had more of a chance to establish himself, he will probably pick up an IPL contract later in his career.

Brandon King:

It was almost taken for granted that Brandon King would be snapped up in the 2020 IPL auction after he finished as the top run scorer in the 2019 Caribbean Premier league, but he didn’t attract interest from any of the 8 teams. His hitting power and ability to consistently clear the rope earned him a West Indies call up, but he has little cricketing experience outside of the Caribbean which is probably why he was overlooked in this year's IPL auction.



(All facts were correct at the time of writing)

Comments

  1. Anonymous21 April 2020 at 02:51

    Interesting article, I wonder how Joe Root fell from such heights after the 2016 world T20 to the position he is in now?

    ReplyDelete
  2. Joss Heddle-Bacon25 April 2020 at 22:06

    Thanks for commenting, it's probably a mixture of the pressures put on him from the test captaincy and also the fact that England have a huge wealth of T20 talent at the moment and he is outshone by the brilliance of others.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Anonymous17 May 2020 at 01:20

    Pretty decent laddie me and u r bezzies at skool

    ReplyDelete
  4. Joss Heddle-Bacon17 May 2020 at 02:08

    Thanks for the feedback mate, glad you're liking the articles

    ReplyDelete

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