5 Indian Players Who Have Played In Foreign Leagues

The Board of Control for Cricket in India has never allowed an actively participating Indian IPL player to play in foreign leagues and a special NOC needs to be granted. If the Indian player does go on to play in foreign leagues, he won’t be able to take take part in IPL again and this has been a rule followed by the BCCI to keep IPL as the number one franchise tournament.

However, India is a country with lots of talent and the competition level is really high that some players decide to move out from the nation. It is very hard to survive for a longer duration of time without being a big name in the Indian cricket team at the moment and here are 5 Indian players who have played in other countries’ franchise tournaments.

Zaheer Khan –  Abu Dhabi T10 League

Zaheer Khan is one of the greatest Indian bowlers to have played the game and he decided to move on from international cricket in 2014. However, he still played in the IPL for the Delhi Capitals and captained the side too. The 2017 season was his last IPL too as he decided to retire from the cash-rich tournament after that.

Zaheer Khan who was an important member of the world cup triumph in 2011 was picked up in the Abu Dhabi T10 league in the 2019 season by the Delhi Bulls. The left-arm seamer is currently serving as the bowling coach of the Mumbai Indians side in the IPL and is also part of the commentary team at times.

Manpreet Gony – Global T20 Canada

Manpreet Gony was a revelation in the first few years of IPL playing for the Chennai Super Kings and even earned his place in the Indian side after his impressive performances. He lost his way after that and hasn’t a regular starter in IPL despite being part of various franchises.

Gony decided to retire from international cricket and IPL in 2019 and immediately signed with the Toronto Nationals side in the Global T20 Canada. One year later, the fast bowling all-rounder was also part of the Lanka premier league with the Colombo Kings squad.

Pravin Tambe – Carribean Premier League

The veteran leg spinner Pravin Tambe was one of the oldest players to have played in the IPL and his last IPL team was Sunrisers Hyderabad in the 2017 season. Going unsold in the next two seasons, Tambe decided to take part in the Abu Dhabi T20 league for the Sindhis and managed to become the first player to take a fifer in T10 games.

Tambe’s excellent stint continued into the Caribbean Premier League where he was picked up by the Trinbago Knight Riders and he was in really good form urging the KKR management to pick him again in the 2020 Auction. However, BCCI ruled him out of the IPL having played in foreign leagues without getting the NOC.

Irfan Pathan – Lanka Premier League

Irfan Pathan was one of the best left-arm swing bowlers in his generation and he has achieved massive feats in the game. His famous first over hat trick against Pakistan will be etched in the memories forever and also, his contribution in the T20 Worldcup winning campaign in 2007 was immense.

He last played for the Gujarat Lions in the IPL in 2017 and wasn’t picked up in the auctions after that. He decided to retire from international cricket in 2020 and signed with the Kandy Tuskers in the Lanka Premier League. Pathan will go down as one of India’s best seam bowling all-rounders and is currently serving as a commentator in the Star Sports network.

Yuvraj Singh – Global T20 Canada

One of India’s greatest limited-overs batsman Yuvraj Singh has an extreme fan base in India and the elegant left-handers’ hits sixes for fun. He was a man of comebacks and his contributions in the 2007 T20 Worldcup win and 2011 50 over world cup win are truly unmatchable. He was the first player in T20i to hit six sixes in an over.

Yuvraj played in the IPL till the 2019 season for the Mumbai Indians and was dropped after that. He then went on to play for the Toronto Nationals in the Global T20 Canada and also played for the Maratha Arabians in the Abu Dhabi T10 league in 2020 post-retirement.