IPL 2018: 5 players who made their mark in the Bangladesh Premier League

#4 Sunil Narine

Sunil Narine has been one of the hardest bowlers to bat against in the shortest format of the game, ever since the West Indies' 'mystery spinner' took the 2012 edition of the IPL by storm. After he was forced to change his bowling action, a lot of critics claimed that he would never be the same again.

They were partially right, as he lost his zing with the change in action. Despite the setback, he continues to be among the best bowlers out there. In the Bangladesh Premier League, it was evident that batsman were coming on to the pitch with the per-conceived mindset of not going after Narine.

He was treated with respect and caution, and thus ended with only 11 wickets. However, his economy rate of 4.95 was bettered by only Rashid Khan.

Until last season, not many of us knew what Narine was capable of with the bat. A lot of us rubbed our eyes in disbelief when he opened the innings for the Kolkata Knight Riders last season. His exploits in the 2017 season were unbelievable, as he accumulated 224 runs with a strike rate of 172.30.

He even smashed IPL's fastest ever fifty in 15 balls against the Royal Challengers Bangalore. He continued this form in the BPL, amassing 200 runs at a strike-rate of 147.05.

These facts and figures show that Sunil Narine is an indispensable T20 asset. Kolkata Knight Riders have been rumoured to have claimed that one retention would be enough for them. However, Narine has had a tremendous BPL season and the Kolkata Knight Riders representatives must surely be considering retaining the Caribbean spinner.