IPL: 5 best buys by Kings XI Punjab over the years

Kings XI Punjab are one of only three franchises who haven't won the IPL though they have played all 11 seasons of the tournament.

KXIP started off brightly, reaching the semifinals in the inaugural 2008 season. However, it was all downhill for them from there on.

It was only in the 2014 season that they managed to reach the finals, courtesy the M&M (Maxwell and Miller) show. Unfortunately for them though, they were beaten by the Kolkata Knight Riders at the last hurdle.

The Mohali-based franchise have kept shuffling their team, and as a result they have failed to click as a unit. KXIP finished with the wooden spoon in three seasons of the IPL: 2010, 2015 and 2016.

In 2018, KXIP started off very well, winning 5 of their first 6 games. But they had a miserable second half of the tournament as they won just one of their last 8 matches to finish at the 7th position.

Punjab have changed their captains regularly and have had as many as 11 different captains in 11 editions of IPL. Ravichandran Ashwin is the current skipper of the KXIP side.

Several greats of the game like Adam Gilchrist, Kumar Sangakkara, Virender Sehwag and Hashim Amla have been a part of KXIP over the years.

Here, we look at the five best buys by KXIP in their history.

1. Shaun Marsh

Shaun Marsh was not very well-known when he was bought by KXIP for an amount of 12 lakh INR during the first-ever IPL auction in 2008.

He missed the first four matches of the inaugural season, yet he scored 616 runs at an average of 68.44. He won the Orange cap in that season, and his contributions helped KXIP qualify for the semifinals - where they lost to the eventual runners-up Chennai Super Kings.

Soon after the inaugural IPL season, Marsh also.made his international debut for Australia.

He missed the 2009 IPL edition and came back in 2010, just to play four matches. He was retained by the Punjab franchise for the next three seasons, where he scored 1080 runs and established himself as the key player for the team.

Marsh was then bought for 2.2 crore INR by KXIP in 2014, but his contributions have dried up since then; having scored only 574 runs in 21 matches. Surprisingly, he remained unsold during the 2018 IPL auction.

Marsh has scored 2477 runs in 71 IPL matches for KXIP at an average of 39.95, with a lone hundred and 20 fifties. He is the longest serving player in KXIP's history, as he played 10 IPL seasons representing the Mohali-based team.

2. Irfan Pathan

Irfan Pathan

Irfan Pathan was tipped to become the ‘next Kapil Dev’ during the early days of his international career. He was one of the most sought players in the 2008 IPL auction after his Man of the match performance in the final of India’s T20 World Cup triumph.

Pathan was bought by KXIP at the auction for 925,000 USD. He has played for six franchises in his IPL career, but was most successful during his time at the Mohali based franchise.

Pathan played 42 matches for KXIP. He was very impressive with the ball during the first 3 seasons, picking up 47 wickets.

He had an impressive IPL in 2010, even though Punjab finished at the bottom of the table. He scored 276 runs in that season at a healthy strike-rate of 148.38, and also took 15 wickets.

KXIP decided not to retain Pathan as they decided to change their team core. He went on to play for six more franchises, but could not replicate his initial success.

3. Glenn Maxwell

Glenn Maxwell

Glenn Maxwell was first bought by Delhi Daredevils in 2012 but was released soon after. He was then bought by Mumbai Indians for 5.3 crore INR but did not figure in many matches for them.

After being released by Mumbai, KXIP acquired Maxwell's services for 6 crore INR. The move paid rich dividends as Maxwell scored heavily during the 2014 season.

He had scores of 95, 89 and 95 in his first three games and was awarded the Man of the Match in all three. He went on to score 552 runs from 16 matches, finishing as the third highest run scorer in the 2014 edition of the IPL.

Maxwell along with David Miller helped Punjab reach the final for the first time in IPL history. However, they lost to KKR in the summit clash.

Maxwell’s performances with the bat diminished over the next 3 seasons. He was eventually released by KXIP after four years, and was bought by Delhi Daredevils for 9 crore INR.

Maxwell's first season at KXIP is his best ever IPL performance in a single season of the tournament till date.

4. Axar Patel

Axar Patel

Like Glenn Maxwell, Akshar Patel was a part of Mumbai Indians during the 2013 edition of the IPL, but he never played a game for them.

The Gujarat born all-rounder was bought by KXIP for 75 lakh INR. He was named as the ‘Emerging Player of the Year’ in IPL 2014 owing to his consistent performances with the ball.

His successful season also helped him secure a spot in the Indian side, and he went on to improve his batting skills in later years.

Axar scored 544 runs in the next three seasons of the IPL and picked up 41 more wickets for KXIP, including a hat-trick against Gujarat Lions in 2016. He was the only player to be retained by KXIP ahead of IPL 2018.

However, Axar had a poor IPL in 2018 as he picked up just 3 wickets and scored 80 runs in 9 matches before being dropped. He has been released along with 10 other KXIP players ahead of the 2019 auction.

5. Piyush Chawla

Piyush Chawla

Piyush Chawla was a 19-year-old Indian international when he was picked up by KXIP for 400,000 USD at the 2008 auction. That cost more than thrice his base price of 125,000 USD, which showed the high regard he was held in at the time.

Chawla was the main spin bowler for KXIP in the first 6 seasons of the tournament before he was bought by KKR. He picked up 41 wickets in 43 matches for KXIP in the first three IPL seasons.

He was bought again by KXIP for 4.1 crore INR at the 2011 IPL auctions, and went on to play 44 matches and pick up 43 wickets over the next three years. Chawla was the most successful KXIP bowler during his time with the Punjab franchise.

He was bought by KKR for 4.25 crore INR at the 2014 auction after Punjab released him. Chawla is now the third highest wicket taker in IPL history, with 140 wickets in 144 IPL games. He won an IPL title during his time with KKR and famously hit the winning runs against his former employees KXIP in the 2014 IPL final.

Though Chawla is now the third choice spinner for KKR behind Narine and Kuldeep Yadav, he still remains a vital cog of the side.