IPL: 10 players you didn't know who played in the tournament

Before the inaugural season of IPL in 2008, there was a lot of apprehension about the success of the tournament. Firstly, T20 was a new format back then and while it had tasted success early, there were questions about its future. Secondly, franchise-based cricket leagues was an unexplored avenue. But IPL took off in a grand fashion in 2008 and has never looked back.

The strength of the tournament is the high quality of cricket put on show by the best players in the world.

The high level of competition motivates international cricketers to give their best in the IPL and thus top players from top teams participate in the cash-rich league every year. However, there are some players who couldn't play in the IPL as much as they would have liked due to national commitments and injuries among other reasons.

On the other hand, there are some players who were called up unexpectedly and got a chance to play in the league. Here is a list of 10 players who, to the surprise of many, played in the IPL.

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#10 Shivnarine Chanderpaul (Royal Challengers Bangalore- 2008)

Chanderpaul for RCB in 2008

Shivnarine Chanderpaul was known for his unique technique and unusual batting stance. However, he contributed a lot to West Indies cricket in the two decades he played for the team.

Owing to his experience, Chanderpaul was picked up by Royal Challengers Bangalore in the inaugural season of IPL in 2008. RCB invested heavily on experienced cricketers and was mocked as the 'Test team' of the IPL. The Bangalore based franchise finished 7th on the points table. Chanderpaul's performance wasn't great either, as he scored just 25 runs in 3 matches and thus wasn't retained the next season.

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#9 Mashrafe Mortaza (Kolkata Knight Riders- 2009)

Mortaza being congratulated by his KKR teammates

When Mashrafe Mortaza made his international debut in early 2000, he was considered to be the next big thing in Bangladesh cricket. The right-arm pacer was quick and became an instant hit in international cricket. Owing to his reputation of being an express bowler, Mortaza was picked by the Kolkata Knight Riders for IPL 2009.

The second season of the IPL was held in South Africa and Mortaza was expected to use the seamer-friendly conditions to his advantage. But unfortunately, things did not go Mortaza's way. In the only match he played in the IPL, he went for 58 runs in his 4 overs.

Rohit Sharma, who then played for Deccan Chargers was extremely severe on the Bangladeshi quick as he scored 26 runs off the last over of the match when 21 runs were needed to win the match. Mortaza hasn't played a single IPL game since then.

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#8 Tatenda Taibu (Kolkata Knight Riders- 2008)

Taibu played 3 matches for KKR

Tatenda Taibu caught a lot of attention early on in his international career. His high energy on the field earned him a lot of accolades. On the virtue of his performances for Zimbabwe, Taibu was bought by Kolkata Knight Riders to play in the first season of the IPL.

Kolkata Knight Riders already had a star-studded line-up and thus the Zimbabwean wicket-keeper had to wait for a long time for his chance. Nonetheless, Taibu failed to grab the opportunity of playing in the IPL. He scored a paltry 31 runs in 3 games at an average of 10.33.

Taibu was eventually dropped from the side and was never considered again by any other franchise. However, Taibu had a fairly successful career for his national side as he went on to play 150 ODIs and 28 Tests. He retired from cricket at the age of 29 in 2012.

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#7 Sanjay Bangar (Deccan Chargers- 2008, Kolkata Knight Riders- 2009)

Bangar played for two IPL teams

Even though Sanjay Bangar raised to fame after becoming the batting coach of the Indian cricket team, very few people know that he was once part of the cash-rich Indian Premier League. Bangar was considered to be a decent all-rounder in the domestic circuit and played in 15 ODIs and 12 Tests for Team India.

Bangar played for two IPL teams, Deccan Chargers in IPL 2008 and Kolkata Knight Riders in IPL 2009. Across two seasons the all-rounder played 12 matches in which he scored 49 runs and picked up 4 wickets.

After such poor returns, none of the teams showed interest in Bangar. However, he did come back in the IPL as the coach of Kings XI Punjab in 2014 where he helped the franchise to reach the finals. He was later appointed batting coach of the Indian national side.

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#6 Shane Bond (Kolkata Knight Riders- 2010)

Shane Bond was impressive in the 8 matches he played for KKR

Shane Bond is perhaps one of the most unlucky cricketers in World Cricket. Despite possessing enormous amount of talent, the Kiwi pacer's career was marred by injuries as he played just 18 Tests and 82 ODIs for the Black Caps. By the time IPL came into existence, Bond was already 32 and was fighting with injuries.

He finally got a chance to play in the tournament in 2010 where he represented Kolkata Knight Riders. Bond was impressive with his bowling in the 8 matches that he played in the season where he took 9 wickets and gave away runs at an economy of 7.23. However, Bond announced his retirement in 2010 and did not play in the IPL ever after.

Bond took up coaching after retirement and was the bowling coach of New Zealand from 2012 to 2015. He is currently the bowling coach of Mumbai Indians.

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#5 Chaminda Vaas (Deccan Chargers- 2008, 2009, 2010)

Vaas with Rohit Sharma playing for Deccan Chargers

Chaminda Vaas is one of the greatest seam bowlers Sri Lanka has ever produced. Vaas has 355 Test and 400 ODI wickets to his name. But despite his brilliant records in all the formats, he is perhaps the most underrated cricketers in World Cricket. And that is the reason why probably most of the cricket fans forget that he was once a part of the IPL.

The left-arm seamer played for Deccan Chargers in three seasons from 2008 to 2010. The Sri Lankan great played 13 matches in this duration and was exceptional for the Hyderabad based franchise. Vaas took 18 wickets at an average of 19.72 and an economy rate of 7.55 runs per over.

Unfortunately for Vaas, by the time the third season of the IPL got over he was already 36 and thus he did not play in the IPL after that.

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#4 Misbah-ul-Haq (Bangalore Challengers Bangalore- 2008)

Misbah going back to the dugout after getting dismissed

Misbah-ul-Haq took the world by storm by his batting in the inaugural World T20 which was held in South Africa in 2007. Misbah's superb performance was recognized at the IPL auction and he was bought by Royal Challengers Bangalore. In a side that consisted of players who were quite orthodox in their approach, Misbah was one of those few batsmen who could play in T20 fashion.

The former Pakistan skipper played in 8 games for the franchise and even though his strike-rate was 144.44, his below-par average of 16.71 was quite underwhelming. RCB performed dismally in the season and finished 7th on the points table.

Because of the ever-rising political tensions between India and Pakistan, Pakistani players were barred from playing in the IPL and thus Misbah-ul-Haq's debut season turned out to be his last season too.

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#3 Darren Lehmann (Rajasthan Royals- 2008)

Lehmann with Warne and Kaif for Rajasthan Royals

Darren Lehmann had a long coaching stint at the IPL. But before that, he even played in the tournament as a player. Darren Lehmann was regarded highly by the then Rajasthan Royals skipper Shane Warne and his inclusion in the Rajasthan Royals team was because of that very reason.

The Royals were exceptional in their debut season and one of the major reasons for their Title victory was the sensational performance of their overseas players. And thus Lehmann couldn't get too many opportunities in the playing XI. The batting all-rounder played just 2 matches in the season where he scored just 18 runs.

Lehmann diverted his attention towards coaching thereafter and replaced Robin Singh as the head coach of Deccan Chargers in IPL 2009, a season where the Chargers were crowned as champions. He later coached Kings XI Punjab before getting appointed as Australia's head coach.

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#2 Michael Clarke (Pune Warriors India- 2012)

Michael Clarke played for Pune Warriors India

Australian cricketers have often restrained themselves from playing in the IPL due to national commitments. Moreover, players who were injury prone and played for Australia in all formats were extra cautious when it came to playing in T20 leagues. Michael Clarke was a crucial player for the Kangaroos in his playing days and thus kept himself away from the IPL limelight to concentrate on his international career.

However, he did play in the IPL in one season. The then Australian skipper played for IPL side Pune Warriors India in 2012. In the 6 IPL games he played for the Warriors, Clarke scored 98 runs at an average of 16.33.

In a bid to extend his international career, Clarke never returned back to play in the league. However, he did return to the league as a commentator after his retirement.

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#1 Andrew Flintoff (Chennai Superkings- 2009)

Flintoff played 3 matches for CSK in 2009

In his time Andrew Flintoff was one of the most sought after cricketers in the world. His all-round talent was well suited for T20 cricket. On account of his ability to create impact, Flintoff was bought by Chennai Superkings at the IPL 2009 auction. Flintoff was expected to do wonders for the franchise but unfortunately, his IPL career never took off.

The England all-rounder scored a paltry 62 runs in the 3 matches he played for CSK. His bowling wasn't great either as he took just 2 wickets at a high economy of 9.55 runs per over.

After this, Flintoff went back to England to undergo knee surgery. He did play for other teams in different T20 leagues around the world but he did not come back to the IPL. Flintoff even went on to call his stint at the IPL 'a waste of time'.

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