IPL 2018: 5 biggest flops of the season

Last year, it was Tymal Mills. The year before that, it was Hardik Pandya. Every year, the IPL throws up players who fail to live up to the expectations bestowed on them.

Often, these expectations are based on the price tags that these players attract in the auction; however, other factors such as recent form and reputation also lead to high expectations.

With this year's league stage coming to an end, this slideshow looks at five players who were expected to make a big impact in the tournament but were unable to do so.

#5 Washington Sundar

Coming off the back of a Player-of-the-Series-winning performance at the Nidahas Trophy, Washington Sundar would have hoped to continue his good run of form in the IPL, however, that did not pan out.

In seven games, the all-rounder took only four wickets at an economy rate of 9.60 and contributed virtually nothing with the bat. Moreover, Sundar was even dropped from the playing XI in the second half of the tournament, quite a turnaround from the start when he was being heralded as the all-rounder who would provide RCB the balance they so often lacked in previous seasons.

However, despite his extremely poor IPL season, Sundar has managed to find a place in the squad for the T20Is against Ireland, and if he plays, he will be looking to return to his best.

#4 Glenn Maxwell

The 'big show' has struggled this season

A nine crore price-tag invariably leads to high expectations, and this was the case with Glenn Maxwell this year. Maxwell was expected to be the matchwinner who would be at the centre of the Daredevils' turnaround in the IPL. However, Maxwell was unable to produce a single performance of note.

While he did play some attractive little cameos in Delhi's first few matches, his overall tally of runs is only 169 in 12 innings at an average of 14.08: the Daredevils and their fans would have expected a lot, lot more from the star. Further, as the tournament wore on, Maxwell's form just seemed to deteriorate and almost unanimously, fans and critics called for him to be dropped from the side.

However, the Daredevils' management showed faith in Maxwell, and they, just like several others, will be hoping that he can repay that faith in future editions of the IPL.

#3 Manish Pandey

Pandey has struggled to time the ball this season

At first glance, Manish Pandey's numbers this season seem fairly decent: he has scored 276 runs in twelve innings at an average of 27.60. However, on closer inspection, especially when evaluated in the context of his 11 crore price tag and the situations he has batted in, it can safely be concluded that his performance this season has been below par, to say the least.

His runs have come at a strike rate of a mere 120, far lower than what is expected in this day and age. Further, looking beyond the numbers, Pandey's batting has lacked any kind of fluency, and he has struggled to strike the ball at critical times, a feature of his batting that has cost his team on certain occasions. Moving into the playoffs, Pandey will be looking to turn around his form, and produce some match-winning performances for his side like he has on many occasions in the past.

#2 Aaron Finch

Finch had a season to forget

Aaron Finch, who was bought by the Kings XI Punjab for 6.20 crores, had a horrid IPL season. In 9 innings, he made 134 runs at an average of 16.75, and failed to register a half-century on even one occasion.

His season began with two consecutive ducks, and since then, he struggled to make any kind of impact for his side. This lacklustre form also led to him being excluded from the XI on certain occasions. The fact that his position in the batting order was not settled did not help his case. With the Kings' campaign in this IPL season finished, Finch will be hoping for a better-defined role in future editions.

#1 Ben Stokes

Ben Stokes, the Player of the Tournament in last year's IPL, is a rather unsurprising entry on this list. This season, he became the most expensive buy at the auction for the second year running, and much was expected of him.

However, he failed rather miserably with both bat and ball. With the bat, he made 196 runs in 13 innings at an average of 16.33, and with the ball, he could only manage to take 8 wickets.

Stokes had no say in his team's fortunes this season, and with his role in this year's IPL over, he will be looking to return to form in international cricket and rectify his failures in future editions of the IPL.