IPL: 5 Players Who Came Back To Haunt Their Teams After Being Released

Apart from the action on the field, there is plenty that happens backstage in the formation of a successful Indian Premier League team. It involves auctions, retentions, and the swapping of players from one IPL franchise to another.

Over the years, multiple players have been involved in releases and retentions. Some have paid rich dividends, while others have failed miserably. However, there have been few players who consistently gave good performances when jumping ship to some other team. It ends up hurting their original franchise of letting them go since they didn’t turn out as well as they would have preferred them to.

We at Cricket Addictor will take a look at five worst releases by the IPL franchises. The list comprises of players who became one of the most valuable players for their new franchises.

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Chris Gayle (Kolkata Knight Riders to Royal Challengers Bangalore):

The swashbuckling left-hander from Jamaica is one of the most destructive batsmen in world cricket. Chris Gayle is the owner of numerous records in T20 cricket, having played 394 games in the shortest format. The veteran made his IPL debut in the year 2009, playing for Kolkata Knight Riders.

His most productive year with the team was the subsequent one where he managed 292 runs in nine games at an average of 32.44. However, the KKR think-tank got rid of him ahead of the 2011 season.  Having gone unsold in the 2011 IPL auction, the Royal Challengers Bangalore roped him in as a replacement for the injured Dirk Nannes.

For two consecutive years, Chris Gayle won the Orange cap, amassing more than 600 runs. Along with Virat Kohli and Ab de Villiers, Gayle made the Bangalore-based franchise the batting powerhouse. In all Gayle featured in seven seasons for Bangalore, piling on more than 3000 runs at a strike rate of above 150.

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Shane Watson (Royal Challengers Bangalore to Chennai Super Kings)

Shane Watson’s outstanding showing in the inaugural edition of the IPL not only catapulted the Rajasthan Royals to the title but also earned him the player of the tournament. He took 17 wickets in 15 games apart from scoring 472 runs at an average of 47.20. 

After staying with Rajasthan till 2015, the Queenslander was bought by Royal Challengers Bangalore in 2016. Unfortunately, in two seasons with the RCB, Watson struggled to keep going with the bat. His performance with the ball had also diminished in the subsequent season, managing just five wickets in eight games.

Bought by the yellow army for the 2018 tournament, Watson roared again after getting promoted as an opening batsman. The 38-year old was highly instrumental in helping the Chennai Super Kings clinch their third IPL title on their comeback to the competition. With the bat in hand, he mustered over 500 runs with two centuries to go by.

Having not won the IPL even once, the Royal Challengers from Bangalore would regret not utilizing the all-rounder properly.

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Gautam Gambhir (DD To KKR)

Along with Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir formed one of the most formidable opening partnerships for India. However, he couldn’t do the same for the Delhi Daredevils (now Delhi Capitals). He didn’t particularly have a horrendous series; however, the Delhi-based franchise decided to release him to revamp the squad.

But Delhi’s loss became Kolkata’s gain. The Kolkata Knight Riders were struggling to find a strong captain to lead their side. After one year of his arrival, Gambhir turned the fortunes of the franchise and led them to win their maiden IPL title in 2012. His aggressive intent on the field apart from his excellent form with the bat worked wonders for the team.

Kolkata claimed yet another title in 2014, making Gambhir one of the two captains to win the tournament twice. Releasing Gambhir would be one of the few blunders that Delhi have committed that hasn’t won them a single trophy in more than a decade.

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David Warner (DD To SRH)

The little dynamite from New South Wales could be one of the most controversial players today; however, he is also an invaluable addition to any side. By the standards of his calibre, David Warner endured modest seasons during his five-year stint with Delhi.

He began breaking the shackles when he became a part of Sunrisers Hyderabad since the year 2014. The southpaw has managed to score at least 500 runs in every season since that year and became the orange cap holder in 2015 and 2017. 

The season eight saw Warner’s ascendancy to the captaincy position. And the following tournament under Warner, Sunrisers Hyderabad lifted their first-ever trophy by beating the Royal Challengers Bangalore in a high-scoring final. The skipper top-scored for his team with a whirlwind knock of 69 from 38 balls.

This is the classic case of the Delhi franchise underutilizing yet another valuable player who found a lot of success in the other franchise.

Ab De Villiers (DD To RCB)

The retired South African batsman is the most versatile batsman of the modern era. De Villiers’ duration in Delhi franchise produced just one high-yielding season in 2009 when he averaged 51.67. For the major part, he kept going in and out of the line-up.

The Royal Challengers Bangalore seized the opportunity by pouching the Proteas’ batsman in the 2011 auction. Along with Virat Kohli, Tilakaratne Dilshan, and Chris Gayle, they brought together a top four that terrorized the bowlers. Virat Kohli and Ab de Villiers also hold the record for the highest partnership (229) for any wicket in the overall tournament.

Delhi made yet another blunder by letting go of De Villiers, who if persisted with may have proven extremely precious.