These once top-line performers are struggling.
In the Indian Premier League (IPL) good players become stars and stars can then go out of form suddenly. That’s happened again this year. Players who were expected to play well haven’t.
Who are the top three costliest and poorest performers of the season? Here’s my take.
Ben Stokes (photo, Times of India)
#1 Ben Stokes: Ben Stokes’ exploits last year made him the costliest player in this year’s IPL auctions. Unfortunately, though, he has not been able to replicate the form that saw him named Most Valuable Player. He scored 316 runs at an average of over 30 and picked up 12 wickets for Rising Pune Supergiant. And that performance played a large part in why the Rajasthan Royals bid for his services. But this year the Englishman has scored a paltry 196 runs at a lowly average of 16. His bowling is also poor; he has taken only 8 wickets in this year’s IPL. Stokes’ poor run of form means that Rajasthan has not gotten the return on the huge amount of 12.5 crores they spent on buying him.
#2 Jaydev Unadkat: Unadkat is the second costliest buy of this season. He was expected to be Rajasthan Royal’s key bowler, but he has not been in form this season. Last season he took 24 wickets in 12 matches with an economy of 7, but this year he has only taken 11 wickets with an economy of over 9. It’s now up to Unadkat to get back in his prime form next season.
Glenn Maxwell (photo, MensXP.com)
#3 Glenn Maxwell: Famously known as “Big Show.” Maxwell is one of the most feared batsmen in T20 cricket. His ability to play unorthodox shots and unsettle the bowlers is second to none. He is most remembered for single-handedly taking Punjab to the Finals in 2014. During that season he scored seven 50’s and scored a whopping 552 runs at a strike-rate of 188. Similar things were expected from the Australian this year but, unfortunately, he has not been able to perform well with bat or ball. In the 12 matches, he has scored 169 runs at an average of just over 14. Maxwell is now more a liability than an asset.
