IPL 2020: 5 Star Players Who Didn't Get To Play A Single Match

Mumbai Indians won the IPL trophy for an unprecedented fifth time. Also, they successfully defended their title by defeating Delhi Capitals by five wickets in Dubai. That Mumbai used a total of just 15 players throughout the tournament without too many changes in the elven is a mantra of their success over the years. Chennai Super Kings is also known for sticking to their eleven and giving their players a long rope, that had made them the second-most successful side in the IPL.

The dictum of giving their first choice players a longer run despite failures is in vogue and has proven successful. Therefore, there were a few players, who are accomplished T20 cricketers but didn’t get a single opportunity in the IPL this season.

5 Star players who didn’t get to play a single match in IPL 2020:

Chris Lynn

Of all the unused cricketers in IPL 2020, Chris Lynn is the most prominent name in the shortest format. He is one of the most destructive openers in T20 cricket. For Kolkata Knight Riders, he has scored 1274 runs in 40 matches at a strike rate of 141. A high price and Lynn’s shoulder issues meant that KKR released him in the auction.

He was bought at his base price of 2 Crores by Mumbai Indians. Despite all his success with KKR in the IPL, Lynn was always going to be the back-up for Quinton de Kock. The South-African skipper was in tremendous form, and hence, the Australian had to be benched. With an expected mega auction to be scheduled, Lynn, 30, will hope to get more opportunities, if not for MI, then for any other team.

Parthiv Patel

While Parthiv Patel is a decent batsman at the top, his game, at times, becomes self-destructive outside of the powerplay. Patel can give solid starts, but he is not a six-hitter like other openers- his IPL career strike rate of 120 suggests the same. Hence, RCB decided to drop him to include Devdutt Padikkal, who has been in terrific form for the last couple of years in domestic cricket.

Padikkal had a fantastic maiden IPL season. He ended up as the leading run-scorer of his team- 473 runs, surpassing even Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers. Padikkal scored 100 more runs this season than Parthiv did last year for Bangalore.

Pawan Negi

Royal Challengers Bangalore used the Right to match card for Pawan Negi a couple of auctions ago, and it seemed he was an important player for the franchise. However, the left-arm spinner has played only 9 games in the last three seasons- none in IPL 2020.

Negi had a brilliant 2017 IPL for RCB where he snared 16 wickets at an economy of 6.12. But he has underperformed in the last two seasons, picking only 4 wickets in 9 matches, and leaking runs at more than 10 per over. Youngsters like Washington Sundar and Shahbaz Ahmed were chosen in the eleven ahead of Negi.

Mitchell McClenaghan

Mitchell McClenaghan is one of the most underrated players in the IPL. But Mumbai Indians have shown faith in him as they repurchase the Kiwi in the auction or get him in the squad as a replacement.

The left-arm seamer has been with MI since 2015 and has played in all seasons, barring 2020. In 56 matches he has a tally of 71 wickets to his name at a decent economy of 8.49. McClenaghan took 3 wickets in 2015 final and bowled well in 2019 final.

MI traded in Trent Boult from Delhi, brought in James Pattinson as a replacement for Lasith Malinga, and bought Nathan Coulter-Nile in the auction for a heavy price; which meant that McClenaghan had to sit on the bench for the entire tournament.

Manan Vohra

Rajasthan Royals bought Manan Vohra as his base price of 20 Lakhs before IPL 2019 and retained him for IPL 2020. However, the right-hander didn’t get a single game in both seasons.

In IPL 2018, he played four matches for RCB and scored 55 runs, including a flashy 45 against MI. Vohra has spent five seasons with Kings XI Punjab and attracted a lot of praises with his audacious strokeplay. For KXIP, in 41 innings he scored 957 runs at a strike of 132.

Chances of Vohra getting a game for the Royals were slim as they bought Robin Uthappa and Yashasvi Jaiswal in the auction, traded in Rahul Tweatia, retained Riyan Parag, Sanju Samson, and several overseas batsmen in their squad.

Also Read: Aakash Chopra Drops Virat Kohli From His Best IPL 2020 XI