IPL 2020: 5 Expensive Players Who Flopped In The Tournament

The 2020 season of the Indian Premier League [IPL] has finally come to an end! And, it’s now the perfect time to reflect on what was possibly the best season ever, given the fact that it was played in such difficult circumstances.

One of the things that we always look forward to in every IPL season is how the cricketers with hefty prize tags perform.

And, just like the seasons of the past, we saw plenty of cricketers who failed to live up to their billing.

Here’s a look at 5 expensive players who flopped in IPL 2020:

Andre Russell- KKR

One of the major disappointments of IPL 2020 was the lack of performances by Kolkata Knight Riders swashbuckling all-rounder, Andre Russell.

Russell, who had come into the season on the back of his astounding exploits with both bat and ball in 2019, failed to up the ante this year.

Russell was undone by the hard lengths bowled by the likes of Kagiso Rabada, Jasprit Bumrah and T Natarajan, and he could only manage 117 runs in 10 innings at an average of 13.

He was decent with the ball, claiming 6 wickets at an average of 29.16, but really it was his lack of impact with the bat that hurt KKR the most.

Glenn Maxwell- KXIP

Glenn Maxwell has been a huge disappointment in the IPL over the years. Barring his breakout season in 2014 where he scored 500+ runs, Maxwell had managed more than 300 runs in just one season.

And, so it was a real surprise when Kings XI Punjab broke the bank by picking the mercurial Australia all-rounder for a whopping Rs 10.75 Crore.

The result: Maxwell endured his worst-ever IPL campaign where he managed a grand total of 108 runs in 11 innings at an average of 15.43 and a strike-rate of 101.89. Maxwell did not manage to hit a single six on the 106 balls he faced this IPL.

Kedar Jadhav- CSK

Kedar Jadhav was bought for a sum of Rs 7.80 Crores by the Chennai Super Kings ahead of the 2018 IPL season.

But barring his match-winning knock in the 2018 season opener against the Mumbai Indians, Jadhav has largely struggled to live up to his billing, the nadir of which was reached in the 2020 edition.

Jadhav failed to cash-in on the repeated opportunities he got in the 2020 season, managing just 62 runs in eight matches at an average of 20.66 and a strike-rate of 93.93 before being eventually dropped from the playing 11.

Sheldon Cottrell- KXIP

The ‘Salute Master’ Sheldon Cottrell raked in a huge mollah at the 2020 auctions when Kings XI Punjab grabbed his services for a whopping Rs 8.5 Crore.

But, unfortunately, the left-arm swing bowler endured a nightmarish campaign; one that was significantly detailed courtesy Rahul Tewatia’s freak assault where he was smashed for five sixes in one over.

Cottrell did play three more games after that ordeal, in which he claimed one wicket before eventually getting benched for the rest of the season.

Overall, Sheldon Cottrell played 6 games, claiming six wickets at an average of 29.33 and an economy rate of 8.80.

Nathan Coulter-Nile- MI

Nathan Coulter-Nile was racked up for a whopping Rs 8 Crore by the Mumbai Indians in the 2020 auctions.

Coulter-Nile missed the major part of the season due to injury but when he did come back to replace James Pattinson, the Aussie fast bowler did not look at his absolute best.

Coulter-nile played seven matches this season, in which he managed five wickets at an average of 41.20.