IPL 2019: 4 players whose career blossomed after leaving Chennai Super Kings

Indian Premier League (IPL), is currently the most valued T20 cricket league in the world. When you talk about the success story of the IPL, one definitely has to talk about Chennai Super Kings (CSK).

It is undoubtedly one of the most successful franchises in the history of the league. It is one teams which makes winning a habit. Led by one of the most successful captains India has ever produced (MS Dhoni), the team has proven itself very effective every season.

For CSK, any new edition of IPL begins at the auction table. They have always taken the auction seriously to acquire good talent and turn them to match winners as the league progresses. When you think of CSK as a team, you think of great players who played a big role in helping them win the trophies.

But it also has been a team of players with a lack of opportunities. MS Dhoni always believed in giving players an extended run at the position best suited for them. As a result, there are players who never got their chance to play and win matches for CSK.

There are cricketers who played very few matches for CSK and later moved to other teams and flourished as a good player.

Here's a look at 4 cricketers whose careers blossomed after they left CSK:

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#1. Parthiv Patel

Parthiv Patel

Parthiv Patel is one of those longest playing cricketers who played for Team India. He was 17 years old when he first debuted for India. Even today, he is part of the National team. Though he isn't consistent in his national appearances, selectors still have faith in his abilities.

Patel is an experienced wicketkeeper-batsman in the domestic circuit. CSK brought Parthiv Patel for the inaugural edition of IPL in 2008. He featured regularly as an opening batsman for CSK.

In his 3-year association with the CSK franchise, Parthiv Patel played 26 matches and had an average of 21. But, later he was roped in by Deccan Chargers (DC) when Kochi Tuskers Kerala was terminated.

Even though Parthiv Patel played all the matches for DC, he could only average 17. His longest association was with the Mumbai Indians franchise, where he played 40 matches and averaged close to 24. With his consistent performances in the domestic circuit with Gujarat, he earned a call-up to the national team in 2016, after a gap of 8 years. Currently, Parthiv Patel plays for Bangalore based IPL franchise Royal Challengers Bangalore.

#2. Wriddhiman Saha

Saha had a good season for Kings XI in 2014

Wriddhiman Saha is a wicketkeeper-batsman from West Bengal. He made his IPL debut with Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in the inaugural edition of IPL. He played with KKR for 3 years before moving to Chennai Super Kings in the year 2011. Although he was a regular feature in the KKR setup playing 33 matches, it all changed when he was in the yellow camp.

In CSK, Saha never got regular opportunities in the playing 11. The fact that CSK never needed any other wicketkeeper-batsman has ended many short careers for that category in the yellow jersey. He played 14 matches for CSK during his 3-year association and scored 144 runs.

But, fortunes changed for Saha when he was brought by Kings XI Punjab (KXIP) in the year 2014. Saha played 57 matches for KXIP in his 4-year stint with Punjab team. He scored 1115 runs at an average of 24 which included an unbeaten century score of 115.

Along with his batting prowess, Saha also got a regular opportunity to keep wickets with KXIP. In his 57 matches with KXIP, he has taken 36 catches and 12 stumpings. He definitely was not the same players after leaving CSK. At present, Saha finds himself in the pool of released players by franchises ahead of 2019 IPL auction.

#3. Vijay Shankar

Vijay Shankar is one of the most consistent all-rounders

Vijay Shankar is a Tamil Nadu born all-rounder who plays for Tamil Nadu in the domestic circuit. He burst onto the scene during the 2014 Ranji Trophy season, where his contributions with the bat helped Tamil Nadu to reach the semi-finals.

He followed it up with another impressive outing in the semi-final against Maharashtra to help his team reach Ranji Trophy final. He finished that season with 577 runs at an impressive average of 57.7

Being a Tamil Nadu cricketer, Chennai Super Kings had roped him in the year 2013. But, he never got his chance to feature in the playing eleven, as during that time, CSK had abundant talent.

He got his only game for CSK in 2014 where he bowled a solitary over. Later in the year 2016, Shankar was brought by another franchise - Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH). He played 4 matches for SRH in which he scored 101 runs at an average of 50.

His consistency in the domestic circuit earned him a national call-up towards the end of 2017. He made his debut for India during the Nidahas Trophy 2018 against Sri Lanka. He went on to play for Delhi Daredevils in the 2018 edition of IPL and played 13 matches where he amassed 212 runs at an average of 53!

#4. Ankit Rajpoot

Ankit Rajpoot

The Utter Pradesh-based Ankit Rajpoot made his Ranji Trophy debut in the year 2012. He made the ball talk in that season by taking 31 wickets at an impressive average of just 18. That is when he fell in the radar of Chennai Super King's team management. In the year 2013, CSK brought him at the auction.

He was with CSK for 2 seasons and it was a time when Team CSK was at its peak. It meant fewer opportunities for Rajpoot to showcase his skills. He could only play 2 matches and was able to get 2 wickets at an average of 35.

He was later roped in by KKR in the year 2016 for Rs 1.5 crores. In his 2 year stint with KKR, Ankit played 9 matches and took 7 wickets at a poor average of 28.

In 2018, Kings XI Punjab shelled 3 Crores to have Rajpoot in their team. He didn't disappoint them with his performance. He took 11 wickets in the edition, at an average of 20 which included a 5 wicket haul for 14 runs against SRH which is sixth best bowling figures by any bowler in the history of IPL.