5 bowlers with unusual actions who faded away

#2 Ajantha Mendis (Sri Lanka)

From being a little-known cricketer in the Kolkata Knight Riders outfit to tormenting the Indian batsmen in the Asia Cup finals – Ajantha Mendis’ rise was exponential. Referred to as the ‘mystery spinner’, Mendis further validated his status as Team India’s chief tormentor when he went on to pick up 8 wickets on his Test debut versus the Men in Blue in 2008. He ended his wicket tally for the series at 26, a record for a 3-match debut series.

Mendis’ shock value came in the form of finger-flicked leg breaks, thereby he also helped in popularising what is nowadays known as the “carrom ball” delivery. It almost appeared as though Sri Lanka had found a successor to the great Muttiah Muralidaran, but like is the case with most mystery spinners – Mendis’ mystery wore off thereby exposing him as unidimensional and far from filling Murali’s huge boots.

While he continued to fare decently in the limited-overs format, Mendis never managed to become a permanent member of the Sri Lankan outfit, often shuttling in and out of the squad.

He last played a Test for Sri Lanka almost two years ago, and did not make it to Sri Lanka’s 2016 World T20 squad.