5 Indian players who resurrected their international careers with the IPL

Suresh Raina is one of the IPL greats

The Indian Premier League (IPL), ever since its inception in 2008, has provided umpteen opportunities for young players to prove their talent on the big stage and establish a name for them. There have been many players who have played for India due to good performances in the IPL. Names which immediately come to mind are Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja.

On the other side of the coin, it also provides opportunities for players who haven't performed well for India thus far to stage a comeback. An impressive performance in the IPL surely catches the attention of the national selectors and over the last few years, we have seen many players stake a return to the Indian team thanks to the IPL.

The IPL is as important to these players as it is to the younger players. The players who have been dropped from the Indian team or have been performing poorly are under immense pressure, arguably more than the younger players.

Since 2008, we have witnessed countless changes and additions to the Indian cricket team and we take a look at 5 players who were playing for India, but weren't successful. They, however, used the IPL as a platform to stake a claim to the Indian team and revive their national careers.

They are:

Suresh Raina

Team: Chennai Super Kings

At the age of 28, Suresh Raina is finally a settled player in the Indian team. He is a regular and a key player for India in limited overs cricket and a reserve middle order batsman in Tests. Things weren’t so smooth for Raina after he made his debut for India in 2005 at the age of 20. He struggled to cement a place in the eleven and was widely seen as a backup player.

He wasn’t prolific and was not picked in the 2007 World Cup squad. He was on the verge of permanently losing his spot in the Indian team when he staged a miraculous comeback. He was brilliant for Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in the early editions of the IPL and that earned him a comeback to the Indian team on the weight of IPL performances and strong domestic performances for Uttar Pradesh.

He became a permanent fixture in limited overs cricket and later made his Test debut for India in 2010. He is the leading run-scorer in the IPL and recently became the first player to take part in 150 IPL games.

Robin Uthappa

Team(s): Mumbai Indians, Royal Challengers Bangalore, Pune Warriors, Kolkata Knight Riders

The precocious talent of Robin Uthappa was never in doubt when he made his debut for India in 2006 in the last ODI of the series against England in Indore. He scored 86 in that game and won lots of praise for his style of play. He became a regular member of the limited overs squad and was part of the 2007 World Cup squad.

He was also a part of the victorious 2007 T20 squad and played an important role in the team, coming in at one drop. However, he had a very poor year in international cricket in 2008 and his inability to control his stroke play kept him out of the Indian team for a long time.

The Bangalorean had mostly average IPL seasons until 2014. He opened with Gautam Gambhir for the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in 2014 and he was magnificent, winning the Orange Cap. He had an excellent domestic season as well and was rewarded with a place in the ODI squad for the tour to Bangladesh and the series against Sri Lanka.

He was in the list of probables for the 2015 World Cup and looks set to be a crucial member for India in limited overs cricket in the coming years.

Amit Mishra

Team(s): Delhi Daredevils, Deccan Chargers, Sunrisers Hyderabad

Amit Mishra has been one of the best spinners in the IPL over the years and also, the only bowler to take three hat-tricks. He made his ODI debut way back in 2003 but had to wait for five more years to make his Test debut. His Test debut coincided with Anil Kumble's retirement and he was briefly viewed as the perfect leg spinner to replace Kumble.

However, his inconsistency let him down and he has played very few matches across all formats since then. However, his IPL performances have kept him in the limelight. A strong 2013 IPL season for the Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) earned him a recall to the Indian squad for the tour to Zimbabwe in 2013, two years after his last appearance.

He picked up 18 wickets in that tour and since then, he has been on the fringes of the Indian squad.

Pragyan Ojha

Team(s): Deccan Chargers, Mumbai Indians

Pragyan Ojha, 28, made his one-day debut for India against Bangladesh in 2008 on the back of strong IPL performances for the Deccan Chargers. He earned praise from his captain, Adam Gilchrist.

However, he never really cemented his place and was widely considered only as a backup spinner to Harbhajan Singh and Amit Mishra. However, he was very successful in the second season of the IPL, which ensured his selection in the 2009 World T20. He later made his debut in 2009, against Sri Lanka. He formed a lethal combination with Ashwin and was playing regularly in home Tests since 2012.

Ojha has performed exceedingly well in the six editions of IPL, having been awarded the Purple Cap for picking up the most number of wickets in IPL 2010. His strong IPL performances have kept him in the minds of the national selectors and he has used the IPL to stake a claim in the Indian team.

Lakshmipathy Balaji

Team(s): Chennai Super Kings, Kolkata Knight Riders, Kings XI Punjab

Lakshmipathy Balaji suffered a stress fracture in 2005 and was ruled out of playing cricket for a while. However, his unwavering spirit staged a miraculous comeback to international cricket in 2009.

He started his comeback with a strong first season in the IPL for the Chennai Super Kings (CSK). He earned a national recall the following year, against Sri Lanka in 2009. He then made it to the Test squad for the tour to New Zealand though he didn't feature in any game.

When it all seemed like his fairy-tale comeback had ended, he came into spotlight again in 2012 after some economical bowling for the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) and earned a call up to the T20 squad for the series against New Zealand. He also found a place in the 15-member squad for the World T20 that year.