IPL 2018: 5 T20 specialists who have not yet played a single game in this year's IPL

During this year's IPL, we have already seen a lot of match-winning performances by foreign players. With just four such players allowed to be a part of each side, it becomes difficult for the team to make choices.

Teams prefer to choose players who are in form or they opt for horses for courses strategy to choose their respective squads. Due to this, quite a few good players have to warm the bench and wait for their opportunities.

Consider the case of Chris Gayle and Shane Watson. It was widely believed that both of them are at the twilight of their careers and would not feature regularly for their respective teams. They have proved all their critics wrong by scoring a century each. Teams have given opportunities and they have grabbed it with both their hands. There are a few world-class players on each side waiting for getting an opportunity to show their skills in this year's IPL.

Here are the top 5 T20 specialists who are waiting to play for their side. Only time will tell if they can justify their place in the side by playing some match-winning knocks.

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5) J P Duminy

The 34 year old South African has played in a lot of franchise T20 Leagues across the globe but is yet to feature in this year's IPL. He is a valuable asset to any team he plays in and has emerged as one of the effective T20 players of this generation. Primarily a batsman, his off-spin and excellent fielding skills are a huge boost and they make him a complete player.

During the auctions, he was bought by Mumbai Indians at a price of ₹ 1 crore. He has been a consistent performer in the IPL and has amassed 1993 runs at a healthy average of 39.86. Notably, in his prior stint for Mumbai, he had one of the highest averages in the IPL, more than Sachin Tendulkar and Sanath Jayasuriya.

With Mumbai Indian teams in doldrums, it would be wise to draft an experienced campaigner like JP Duminy. His ability to finish the innings along with his bowling and fielding skills would give the Rohit Sharma led team more options.

4) Alex Hales

Alex Hales

Alex Hales was drafted by Hyderabad at the 11th hour to replace David Warner. He is an aggressive top-order batsman and is considered as a T20 specialist. He came into the limelight with a knock of 171 runs against Pakistan which helped England post their highest ODI score of 444.

He has played 52 T20 matches and scored an impressive 1456 runs at an average of 31.65. A tall batsman (height of 6'5), he is known for his powerful shots and six hitting abilities.

The 29-year-old batsman is yet to make his debut in the IPL and whenever he gets a chance, one can expect him to light up the tournament with his wide array of shots.

3) Carlos Braithwaite

Carlos Braithwaite

The burly all-rounder from West Indies is known all over the world for his performance against England in the final of T20 World Cup a few years ago. He hit Ben Stokes for four consecutive sixes in the final over and led Windies to a famous victory. Currently, Carlos is the captain of the West Indies T20 team.

His stint in the IPL began with Delhi Daredevils. In 2016, he was bought for a whopping sum of ₹ 4.2 crores and was one of the costliest all-rounders.

In the 10 matches that he has played in the IPL, he has not yet given match-winning performances and has just 93 runs against his names. With the ball, he has fared much better with eight wickets to his name.

Going forward, we can expect him to be in the thick of things for Hyderabad as their lower order looks fragile.

2) Moeen Ali

Moen Ali

He is a batting all-rounder and an effective off-break bowler and has been a vital cog in the England team as he has made useful contributions with both bat and ball.He had a record-breaking year last year and won the man-of-the-series award against South Africa. His 252 runs and 25 wickets helped England thump South Africa.

Looking at such stellar performances, RCB brought him for ₹ 1.7 crores. This move was primarily aimed at strengthening the lower order which has been a headache for the Bangalore franchise.

With Corey Anderson not being effective with the bat, Moen Ali may get his chance sooner than later. With such cricket pedigree, we can expect him to shine in the IPL with both bat and ball.

1) Tim Southee

Tim Southee

The 29-year-old New Zealander is known for his swing bowling and his knack of picking up wickets with the new ball makes him a key player in any team. Along the way, he has improved his bowling at the death and uses change in pace to good effect.

In the limited opportunities that he has got, he has picked up 22 wickets at an economy rate of 8.31. Bowling has always been RCB's Achille's heel. They have conceded a lot of runs in the death overs and in the last match against CSK, RCB leaked runs at the end and could not defend a score of 205.

To solve this problem, The Red Army picked up Tim Southee at a price of ₹ 1 crore. As usual, this year too, RCB are leaking runs at the death overs and it is costing them matches. With such a fragile bowling attack, it is surprising that RCB has not yet drafted him into the side.