IPL 2020: Ten overseas players to have won the title twice

When it began in 2008, no one knew what the Indian Premier League would turn out to be and whether the men behind the T20 extravaganza could manage to replicate the kind of success global football leagues had achieved over the years. However, it hardly took any time for the world to realise the grandeur of the IPL, which also became the trendsetter for domestic cricket leagues for almost all cricket playing nations.

Today, the IPL is undoubtedly at the pinnacle of all cricket leagues given how it is perceived by players and organisers around the world, with boards also ready to tweak their international calendars to accommodate the cash-rich league in the cricketing schedule.

It is the extent at which overseas players participate in the IPL that makes it such a shining jewel in the BCCI's crown. And thus it makes total sense for us to indulge ourselves in some trivia that concerns the overseas players. This article enlists ten such foreign cricketers who you definitely would not believe have been on the title-winning side not just once but twice!

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1. Eoin Morgan

English World Cup-winning captain Eoin Morgan started his IPL career at RCB in 2010 and was acquired by the Kolkata Knight Riders before the 2011 season.

In his three seasons with KKR from 2011 to 2013, Morgan featured in 26 matches, but none of them were in the 2012 season which KKR went on to win. The Irishman then represented the Sunrisers Hyderabad in the 2015 and 2016 editions and featured in 7 matches in the latter which SRH went on to win.

He returns to KKR for the upcoming season with the success of the English ODI side behind him and would be expected to play a vital role in their middle-order.

2. Tim Southee

Kiwi pacer Tim Southee has been a successful opening bowler across formats on the international stage but has largely been unable to translate that success to the IPL. Having featured in seven seasons since 2011, he has all but managed 28 wickets across a 40-match career.

However, he was fortunate to be a member of the championship-winning side on two occasions. The first time was in his debut season of 2011, when he played five matches for Chennai Super Kings, and then again in 2017, when he played three matches for the Mumbai Indians.

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3. Morne Morkel

South African pacer Morne Morkel, unlike the majority of players on this list, did leave a mark on the league with his bowling performance. In fact, he ended up winning the Purple Cap in the 2012 season courtesy his 25 wickets. However, his exploits with the ball did not prove enough for his side, Delhi Daredevils, to win the title.

Morkel, though, was fortunate to have been a member of the Shane Warne-led Rajasthan Royals side that lifted the trophy during the inaugural edition of the IPL, even though he did not get to play a single game. He, however, did pick 12 wickets across as many matches in Kolkata Knight Riders' 2014 title winning campaign.

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4. Ben Cutting

Although Aussie all-rounder Ben Cutting has just played 21 IPL games across five seasons that he has featured in, he ensured that his best performance came when it mattered the most.

His unbeaten 39-run cameo coupled with the wickets of Chris Gayle and KL Rahul in the 2016 final saw Cutting being adjudged Man of the Match, helping the Sunrisers Hyderabad win their first title.

Cutting again ended up being on the winning side in the 2019 edition when he just got to play three games in Mumbai Indians' successful campaign.

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5. George Bailey

One of the luckiest players to have won two IPL winner's medals, George Bailey was a member of the Chennai Super Kings squad that won consecutive titles in 2010 and 2011.

Bailey played just one game across these two campaigns. The former Aussie captain was unable to find a place in a settled CSK XI, which boasted of foreign nationals like Mike Hussey, Dwayne Bravo, Faf du Plessis and Albie Morkel.

Although, it is worth mentioning that Bailey led the KXIP into the final of the 2014 edition, but could not help his team cross the line.

6. Ryan ten Doeschate

Dutch all-rounder Ryan ten Doeschate has genuinely benefited from playing in various cricket leagues, including the IPL. He would prove to be a handy T20 freelancer.

In the IPL, he played all his 29 games for the Kolkat Knight Riders between 2011 and 2015 and thus happened to be a part of their two title runs in the 2012 and 2014 editions.

Bailey played just three games in 2012. However one will have to say that he was fortunate to have featured in ten games in 2014, given that the right-handed batsman scored only 52 runs and picked a solitary wicket.

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7. Jacob Oram

Another beneficiary of good fortune, New Zealand all-rounder Jacob Oram can hardly be remembered as having played in the IPL. However, like Bailey, Oram too was a part of CSK's squad that won the 2010 edition, without having had to play a single game.

His next IPL medal was courtesy Mumbai Indians' 2013 success wherein he did get to play, but just a single game, with hardly any contribution with the bat or ball.

8. Scott Styris

Like compatriot Jacob Oram, Scott Styris saw luck shine upon him as he hardly played a significant role for Deccan Chargers in 2009 and then Chennai Super Kings in 2011.

The similarity in both these campaigns apart from their eventual result was that the Kiwi all-rounder featured in the first two matches for his team in both seasons. However, Styris could not impress the management enough to continue with him further.

The cricketer-turned-commentator though would not complain about having two winners' medals without having done much and played all but 12 IPL games.

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9. Marchant de Lange

South African pacer Marchant de Lange has had the shortest career for someone who has won two IPL titles, given that he played a mere five games across three seasons.

De Lange played three of those games for KKR in their first IPL success of 2012. He played a game apiece in 2014 and 2015 for the Mumbai Indians and thus ended up winning IPL 2015.

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10. Aiden Blizzard

Australian batsman, Aiden Blizzard's story is unique in the sense that he represented the Mumbai Indians in seven games across 2011 and 2012, with returns of a paltry 120 runs.

But for some strange reason, the franchise persisted with him over the next three seasons, even though he did not feature in a single game. As luck would have it, Mumbai won two of those editions in 2013 and 2015, giving Blizzard the perfect return for no effort of his.