Since its inception in 2008, the Indian Premier League (IPL) has given the sport many match winners like Jasprit Bumrah, Hardik Pandya, and Yashasvi Jaiswal to name some. Having said that there have been a number of players in the past that had lit up the league when it was in its initial years but in the present scenario either the fans have forgotten about them or they were not able to flourish at the international level for a long period of time resulting to them not getting the due recognition
Shaun Marsh
The former Australian batter Shaun Marsh made his IPL debut before playing for Australia. The left-hander took the inaugural season of the league by storm as he ended up scoring 616 runs becoming the first batter to win the orange cap while playing for Kings XI Punjab( now Punjab Kings)
Although Marsh was a consistent part of Punjab Kings post the inaugural season and played some crucial knocks for the franchise including a match-winning half-century in 2015 against Rajasthan Royals which helped his team chase down a stiff target of 191, the left-hander is majorly known for his heroics in the inaugural edition of the league where he scored his only IPL century as well against RR
Marsh’s eye-catching batting in IPL 2008 earned him a spot in the Australian team for the tour of West Indies in June that year and the left-hander grabbed the opportunity with both hands by scoring 81 runs and bagging the Man of the Match award on his ODI debut.
Shaun Marsh Half Century vs RR: IPL 2015
Paul Valthaty
Paul Valthaty is one of those talented Indian cricketers who never got the opportunity to represent India at the international level. Having toured with the Indian team for the 2002 Under 19 World Cup alongside names like Parthiv Patel and Irfan Pathan Valthaty had to sit out for the majority of the tournament due to an eye injury
Valthaty shot to fame during the fourth edition of IPL in 2011 when he scored a breathtaking century against Chennai Super Kings while playing for the Kings XI Punjab (now Punjab Kings). After an eye-catching season with the bat, the right-hander’s success in the league was short-lived as he could only score 36 runs in seven games across the next two seasons. Valthaty featured in a total of 23 games in his IPL career with his last appearance coming in the 2013 season against Sunrisers Hyderabad
Corey Anderson
The former New Zealand all-rounder came into the limelight after scoring the then-fastest ODI century on New Year’s Day in 2014. Anderson’s exploit with the bat was enough for him to earn an IPL contract with Mumbai Indians in the same year. He repaid the faith by scoring 265 runs in 12 matches which included a match-winning knock of 95 runs off 44 balls in a must-win encounter for MI against RR in IPL 2014 where the Rohit Sharma-led side chased a target of 190 runs in 14.4 overs to book a place in the playoffs.
However, he was dismal with his performances with both bat and ball in the coming seasons and was not able to set the IPL arena on fire. Overall, the ace all-rounder has scored 538 runs in 30 matches at a strike rate of 127.19 and bagged 11 wickets at an alarming rate of 10.46.
Corey Anderson 95(44) vs RR: IPL 2014
Manvinder Bisla
Like Valtahty Bisla who was also a part of the Indian squad for the 2002 Under 19 World Cup didn’t get the opportunity to represent the country at the highest level, Having said that the wicketkeeper batter is known for his exploits in the final of IPL 2012 against CSK where he single-handedly won Kolkata Knight Riders its maiden IPL title. Chasing a stiff target of 190 runs to win Bisla scored 89 runs off just 48 balls an innings which made him a household name. But the right-hander couldn’t carry his rich vain of form in the next season and played the last game of his IPL career in 2015.
Manvinder Bisla 89(48) vs CSK: IPL 2012 Final
Albie Morkel
The hard-hitting South African all-rounder Albie Morkel was an integral part of the CSK squad during the team’s back-to-back title-winning campaign in 2010 and 2011 and made a name for himself as a handy all-rounder who can pick crucial wickets and score quick runs lower down the order. Among many of his game-changing is his match-winning knock against Royal Challengers Bangalore in IPL 2012 when he took Virat Kohli to the cleaners smashing him for 28 runs in an over helping CSK beat RCB in a thriller
Through his heroics in IPL Morkel made a name for himself in T20 cricket and started playing T20 leagues around the world with his last IPL appearance coming in 2016 against Gujarat Lions.
Although Morkel had a successful IPL stint with CSK his international career didn’t flourish as much as he would have liked, Having made his debut for South Africa in 2004 the all-rounder represented his nation in 109 games across formats having last featured in an international match in 2015 against India.
