Five well-known players whose careers dwindled after leaving RCB

The Royal Challengers Bangalore is one of the most popular IPL franchises, with a fan base in millions. However, they still carry the rather inglorious honor of having never won the title, only one of three sides to carry the black mark.

Despite being so, the Bengaluru-based outfit has had some amazing players to feature for their side. Indian skipper and world-class batsman Virat Kohli has never played for another team, while Chris Gayle, AB de Villiers, Yuzvendra Chahal and so on have all played their best years of IPL cricket with RCB.

While Kohli, ABD, Chahal, and some others continue in the club, others like Manish Pandey, Sarfaraz Khan, Shane Watson and so on - who have excelled for RCB before, is no longer part of the side. While Watson went on to create a huge impact in CSK's title-winning run in the 2018 IPL, not all have been equally successful after leaving Bangalore.

In this particular article, we will take a peek into the IPL careers of some cricketers who have had below-par IPL careers since their departure from RCB.

---

1. Ross Taylor (New Zealand)

Ross Taylor

Ross "Roaring" Taylor, as he is fondly known among cricketing circles in his home country, is undoubtedly one of the finest batsmen that the Kiwis have ever produced. Taylor is also their highest century-maker in ODIs, and his marvelous flexibility across formats makes him an asset to the game.

Taylor joined RCB in the first ever IPL season in 2008 and continued on until the end of the 2010 season. He also captained the side in a few games in 2009, when they eventually became tournament runners-up. In the three seasons he played there, Taylor scored 517 runs at a brisk strike rate of 142.03, in 22 matches. His highest score was 81*.

Taylor was released by RCB in 2011, and things haven't gone too well with the Kiwi star since. In the past eight years, Taylor has played just 33 games across four seasons, scoring 500 at a strike rate of 109.17, including a best knock off 55. He played for Rajasthan in 2011, Delhi in 2012, Pune Warriors (now defunct) in 2013 and was back at Delhi in 2014.

A continuous dismal run meant that Taylor remained unsold in IPL auctions since 2014. He had also chosen not to enter in the auctions of the past three years, and it looks like his IPL career has reached an impasse.

2. Tillakaratne Dilshan (Sri Lanka)

Angelo Mathews

The Sri Lankan maverick, most famously known for his "Dil-scoop" shot, joined RCB after three good seasons with the Delhi Daredevils, when he scored 566 runs from 27 matches at an average of 24.61 and a strike rate of 119.66. He continued his fine run with RCB, where he made another 587 runs from 25 matches, at an average of 27.95. He also broke his previous high of 67* to raise the bar to 76*.

However, Dilshan failed to create an impact throughout the 2013-14 international seasons, and he couldn't find a buyer in the 2014 IPL. He continued to fade out while playing for Sri Lanka, in what was a very sad finish to his remarkable career.

His IPL career ended with his last season with RCB in 2013, since when he has not featured in the tournament.

3. Praveen Kumar (India)

Praveen Kumar

The UP-born right-arm medium pacer joined RCB in IPL's debuting season and played on with the side till 2010. It was also during that time that the bowler gained the attention of national selectors, which in turn landed him his debut with the Indian national side.

For RCB, Praveen played 38 matches, bowling a total of 139.2 overs, picking 34 wickets including a best of 3/18 at a strike rate of 24.59, which is roughly a wicket every four overs. Since being released in 2011, he had trouble sticking to a single side, turning up for Punjab, Mumbai, Hyderabad, and Gujarat in the years between then and 2017. His performances also dwindled, picking up only 49 wickets from his last six seasons as opposed to his 34 with RCB in just three seasons.

Praveen went unsold in the 2018 auctions, and after an eventful career that was its peak for a very short time, bid adieu to international Cricket earlier this month. His career was laden with injuries and slight disciplinary issues, which makes his story a would-have-been, rather than a case of how fine he was, despite having adequate talents and skill.

4. Varun Aaron (India)

Varun Aaron

Indian readers would remember the pacer who created quite some ripples back in the 2013s, '14s, and '15s, and faded away immediately afterwards. The speedster who made it a routine to bowl in the high 130-140 kmph range is still at it in domestic circuits, but not to be found in the international levels.

Varun joined RCB in 2014 and played through the seasons of '14, '15 and '16, in a total of 24 matches, bowling a total of 77.4 overs and earning 21 wickets, including a best of 3/16. He had previously played with KKR in 2011 and the Delhi Daredevils (now Delhi Capitals) in 2012 and 2013, in a total of 18 matches, picking up 15 wickets only. That being said, Varun had his most successful run between 2014 and 2016, when he was one of RCB's main pacers.

He went unsold in the 2017 and 2018 auctions after failing to impress various franchises. He has signed up for the 2019 auctions as well, and it is yet to be seen whether he will make an impact this time.

5. Zaheer Khan (India)

Zaheer Khan

It is a sorry fact that India's legendary bowler Zaheer Khan had to make it into this list. But in all fairness, his career dwindled because his years after RCB were mostly his twilight years in the game.

India's main strike bowler for more than a decade and a half, Zaheer Khan made it into RCB's earliest squad in 2008 and played there till 2010, making 49 scalps in 44 games at a strike rate of a wicket every 20 balls.

In 2011, he shifted his base to Mumbai where he played on until 2013, but wasn't equally successful, picking up 25 wickets in 26 appearances. He was then picked up by Delhi, with whom he played another 30 games, taking just 26 wickets.

In the six seasons he was away from RCB, Zaheer thus could pick only two wickets more than what he could while at RCB in half the time. He eventually retired from all formats of the game, settling down with mentorship roles for different teams.