All-time underperforming IPL XI

Now, this sort of topic is a difficult task for any writer or fan as every fan would have different opinions and he may disagree on someone else's choices. But, every sport has some players who are not able to keep up with the expectations of the fans or are not able to make full use of their talent.

However, it is to be kept in mind that the following players are not on this list because they are bad players, but because they are good players who have just not been able to live up to the expectations in the IPL.

Hence, certain individuals who have been excellent at the game are present in this unique XI as well.

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#1 Mayank Agarwal

The biggest talking point in Indian domestic cricket for the past couple of years, Mayank Agarwal has consistently done injustice to his talent in the IPL. Mayank was the highest scorer in the 2017-18 season of the Ranji trophy scoring over 1000 runs at an average of 105 and strike rate of 69. KXIP signed Mayank with plenty of expectations in the following IPL and gave him plenty of opportunities but, Mayank like always, failed to deliver in the IPL as he managed only 120 runs in 11 innings.

The Karnataka opener has an awful record in the IPL where in his 59 innings he has only managed 934 runs at an average and strike rate of 16 and 123, respectively. While Mayank struggles in the IPL, he has an excellent domestic T20 record where he has scored 1347 runs at an average and strike rate of 35 and 136, respectively.

The above stats and the fact that he has only three fifties in the IPL clearly shows that Mayank has been a consistent under-performer in the IPL over the years.

#2 Aaron Finch

It would come as a surprise for many to see Finch on this list. The destructive right-handed opener is a terrific T20 player and is consistently in the top 3 of ICC rankings for T20Is. Finch also hold the record the for the top 2 highest scores in T20Is where the 172 he blasted against Zimbabwe off 76 balls is the highest.

The destructive right-handed batsman carries an excellent T20 record. In his T20 career so far, Finch has played 239 games and has over 7500 runs at an average of 36.4 and a strike rate of 143. The fact that Finch owns 28 MoM awards in T20 matches makes his record look even better.

Now, let's compare Finch's IPL record with his T20 record minus the IPL record. In the T20 matches other than those of IPL, Finch scores runs at an average of 38 and a devastating strike rate of 145+ whereas the same player has scored 1700+ runs in 75 IPL games at an average of 26 and a strike rate of 130. Moreover, his matches to MoM ratio also dips in the IPL. In the IPL, Finch wins a MoM after every 15 matches whereas in other T20s he wins a MoM after every 7 games. The difference in the stats proves that Finch never brings his 'A' game to the IPL. and hence, is an under-performer.

#3- Glenn Maxwell (VC)

Glenn Maxwell

Some may disagree, but Glenn Maxwell's IPL journey has been a failure so far. The right-handed Victorian can put any bowling unit to shame on his day by hitting them all around the ground. Maxwell is one of the cleanest and most innovative strikers of the cricket ball and as a result has hit 239 sixes in 219 T20 games.

Maxwell carries an exceptional T20 record, having scored over 4600 runs at a decent average of 25 and a devastating strike rate of 155+. In the same number of matches, he possesses 23 50+ scores and 2 hundreds.

In the IPL, baring the 2014 season in which half the matches were played on the flat UAE tracks, Maxwell has always struggled on Indian pitches. Maxwell in IPL matches in India averages a mere 19. Moreover, he has only 3 50+ scores in 64 IPL matches that he has played in India. These stats and the fact that Maxwell struggles against all kinds of spin bowling, clearly show that he has not been able to become the 'Big Show' in the IPL so far.

#4 Yuvraj Singh (C)

Yuvraj Singh once a golden boy for the whole generation of Indians, looks to have passed his prime. During the 2000s the southpaw was one of the cleanest strikers of the cricket ball. He was a nightmare for the bowlers and a delight for the fans and neutrals. Yuvraj Singh is one of the biggest match-winners India has ever produced in limited overs cricket. The southpaw, known for his elegantly timed shots and handy left-arm spin bowling, was a permanent fixture in India's 50 and 20 overs side till 2011.

Yuvraj has won 34 'man of the match' awards in 362 limited overs appearances for India, Yuvraj's tally of MOM awards exceed those won by the likes of Sehwag, Dhoni, Rohit, and Raina whereas in the IPL he has only 5 such awards in 128 appearances.

The man of the tournament in the ICC World Cup in 2011 and a major part of the 2007 T20WC team, Yuvraj has never set the IPL on fire. He has scored 2652 runs in the IPL till date, at an average and strike rate of 24.68 and 130, respectively. Moreover, in his last 45 games in the IPL, Yuvraj has scored only 801 runs at an average of 20 and a strike rate of 120. Considering the bids he has attracted in the last few auctions, Yuvraj has been a disappointment, both for the fans and the owners. These stats clearly show that Yuvraj has become one of IPL's top under-performers.

#5 Stuart Binny

Stuart Binny and his wife Mayanti Langer

Stuart Binny, the son of former Indian all-rounder Roger Binny has been unable to replicate his father's success. He is regularly trolled on social media for his ineffective performances. He started his IPL career back in 2010 with Mumbai Indians and even after playing a decent number of matches, has failed to leave a mark and is highly inconsistent.

Binny who also has played 23 International matches for India across all 3 formats carries a below average IPL record. Binny in the IPL has played 87 matches scoring 810 runs at an average of 19. Moreover, Binny has not done anything special with the ball too. In his 87 games he has only 21 wickets. It's difficult to believe that Binny who has such poor numbers and has never been adjudged 'man of the match' has played in the IPL for 8 years.

#6 Gurkeerat Singh Mann

Gurkeerat Singh Mann is one of the best players produced by Punjab in recent years

Gurkeerat is a 28-year-old Punjabi right-hander who can ball and bowl right-arm off break. He is one of the best players Punjab have produced in the last few years. He has an excellent domestic record where he has scored over 2600+ first class and 2700+ list A runs at averages of 45 and 46, respectively. Due to his consistent performances in the domestic circuit, Mann was called up to the national side and made his ODI debut in 2016 against Australia at the iconic MCG. He has played 3 ODI matches for India scoring only 13 runs and as a result, was dropped from the national side.

Mann was brought by KXIP in the 2012 IPL auction and has played all his 30 IPL matches for them. Just like Mayank, Mann has also been unable to convert his domestic performances into IPL success. In the IPL, Mann has played 30 matches in which he has scored just 342 runs at an average of 16 and strike rate of 125. He has only a solitary 50 in the IPL.

#7 Naman Ojha (WK)

Naman Ojha

Naman Ojha is a right-handed wicket-keeper batsman from Madhya Pradesh. He is one of the most consistent performers for his state team. He came into the limelight when Rajasthan Royals signed him for the second season of the IPL. He instantly made a mark in the league by scoring back-to-back fifties in his first two games. He made his debut for India in 2010 and has represented India in all 3 formats of the game. Due to the presence of Dhoni as the primary wicker keeper and preference of Karthik and Patel as back-up keepers, Naman never got an extended run in the International side.

The talented Indian batsman was unable to make a mark in the IPL after his first two innings. In his IPL career, Naman has played 113 matches for various teams, scoring over 1500 runs at an average of 21 and at a strike rate of 118. Naman, who was once considered to replace Dhoni in the Test side, has not done justice to his talent and the expectations. With age not on his side, it would be hard for Naman to make a mark now.

#8 Murali Kartik

Murali Kartik

Probably Murali Kartik is the unluckiest spinner in Indian cricket history. His career coincided with the careers of Anil Kumble and Harbhajan Singh and hence, only got chances when they were rested or injured. As a result, Kartik ended up just as a First-Class legend picking 644 wickets in 203 matches. He was also a good limited overs performer for Tamil Nadu as he picked up 249 List A wickets in 194 games.

The classical left-arm spinner played a significant amount of his cricket in England for different county teams. In the T20 format, he carried more than a decent record. In 91 T20 matches other than those of the IPL, Kartik has picked over 80 wickets at an acceptable economy of 6.5 whereas, in the IPL, Kartik could take only 31 wickets in 56 games at an economy of 7.3. These stats by no means show the talent Kartik possesed.

#9 Tim Southee

Tim Southee is the New Zealand's premier bowler alongside Boult

An accomplished performer for New Zealand over the years and probably one of the best Test match fast bowler currently, Southee has over 450 international scalps. Southee has an unreasonably high economy of 8.6 in T20Is but his wicket-taking ability makes up for the high economy. He has 63 wickets from 54 matches.

The right-arm pace bowler has a mixed bag of records in other T20 matches. The Kiwi fast bowler has taken 178 wickets from 160 bowling innings at an economy of 8.3. In the IPL Southee has played for top teams like RR, CSK, MI and recently RCB. In his IPL record, Southee has nothing to show. In his 37 IPL games, he has only taken 27 wickets an economy of 8.5. For a top ODI bowler, Southee indeed has under-performed in the IPL.

#10 Brett Lee

Brett Lee was probably the fastest bowler ever to have played the game

Arguably the fastest bowler ever, Brett Lee was a great weapon of the mighty Australian team of the 2000s. Lee has over 700 international scalps. Though Lee has a great Test match record, his ODI record is unbelievably good. Lee represented Australia in 221 ODI matches, taking 380 wickets at an amazing strike rate of 29 and economy of 4.76.

Brett always felt comfortable with the white ball and this made him a perfect fit for the T20 format too. Lee has 84 wickets in 82 T20 games other than the IPL. He took these wickets at an impressive economy for 7.1. Despite his success in the format, Lee never had a great IPL season. In his 38 IPL games, Lee only managed 25 wickets at an economy of 7.5. Moreover, he has only got a 3-wicket haul only once in the IPL.

#11 Ishant Sharma

Ishant Sharma

The tall Indian fast bowler got a long rope in the IPL by different franchises despite having poor showings before finally going unsold in the 2018 IPL auction. Ishant, who has 256 Test scalps, is an important member of the Indian Test team in overseas conditions but has never succeeded in the T20 format.

In his IPL career, Ishant has nothing impressive to show. In 76 IPL games, he has just 58 wickets at an unacceptable average of 39. His lack of wicket-taking abilities hit an all-time low in the 2017 edition, where he took just 1 wicket from 6 matches for KXIP. Moreover, he gives runs at an unreasonably high rate of 8.2 runs per over and has been a consistent failure in the death overs. For a player who has gone on to play international cricket for so many years and has a good ODI and List A record, much more was expected of Ishant.