Another gruelling season of the Indian Premier League has come to an end with Sunrisers Hyderabad laying hands on their maiden title. In more ways than one, the 2016 IPL turned out to be a highly productive tournament. While the likes of Virat Kohli and David Warner set new benchmarks in the batting department, bowlers such as Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Mustafizur Rahman and Yuzvendra Chahal turned the heat on the opposition batsmen.
On the contrary, there were a few surprisingly poor performances from some of the big names in the tournament. Also, there were players who fetched hefty price tags in the auctions but were unable to justify them on the field of play. Additionally, there were also some cricketers who could be better off playing in other teams as their current franchises did not express much interest in giving them enough chances.
Trending
Here are 10 cricketers from the recently concluded IPL season who should be released by their team:
Irfan Pathan - Rising Pune Supergiants
After not getting to play a single game for Chennai Super Kings last season, Irfan Pathan would have hoped for a positive change as he was purchased for his base price of Rs 1 crore by new franchise Rising Pune Supergiants. Although he got to play 4 matches this time around, he scored just 11 runs in 3 innings and bowled 8 overs for no wicket.
More than his lacklustre performance in the few games he played, it is MS Dhoni's reluctance to use Pathan for most part of the tournament which warrants his release from RPS next season. The Baroda all-rounder could easily come in more handy for any other franchise that can use him properly.
Deepak Hooda - Sunrisers Hyderabad
All-rounder Deepak Hooda may have earned an IPL winners medal in just his second year of taking part in the tournament but he had quite a forgettable year in terms of performance. Hooda was one of the most promising young players coming into the season based on his heroics for the currently-suspended Rajasthan Royals franchise in the 2015 IPL.
SRH signed the 21-year old for a whopping Rs 4.2 crore at the auction and he is one of the players not to have missed a single match this season. However, he was largely unable to deliver as per expectations. scoring just 144 runs and picking up 3 wickets. Considering the large sum of money the Sunrisers paid for Deepak Hooda, they may want to release him for the 2017 season.
Ishant Sharma - Rising Pune Supergiants
Indian fast bowler Ishant Sharma has historically been one of MS Dhoni's go-to men; however, strangely enough, the lanky pacer stayed out of his skipper's scheme of things for most of the season. Ishant fetched a fat purse of Rs 3.8 crore in the auctions this year from newcomers in the league, Rising Pune Supergiants.
Despite having been bought for such a big amount, the quickie could find a place in the playing XI only in 4 matches. He could manage to claim just 3 wickets in these games and conceded his runs at close to 10 runs per over. India's No. 1 Test pacer warmed the benches during the rest of the season and it would be feasible option for both him and the franchise that they part ways in the next edition.
Kane Richardson - Royal Challengers Bangalore
Although Australian paceman Kane Richardson did come up with one credible performance this season, he did not look the part for Royal Challengers Bangalore. Richardson was bought for Rs 2 crore in this year's auction but was picked to play just 4 matches in the entire duration of the tournament.
The 25-year old claimed 7 wickets but gave away his runs at an economy rate of slightly under 10. With England fast bowler Chris Jordan being drafted into the team, Richardson's chances of getting a game suffered a big blow and he remained on the benches until the end of the season. It could be a blessing in disguise for the Aussie if he is released from RCB in 2017.
Kyle Abbott - Kings XI Punjab
Kings XI Punjab shelled out Rs 2.1 crore at the 2016 IPL auction to acquire the services of South African pace bowler Kyle Abbott. However, with the kind of performances Abbott came up with in the 5 matches he played, investing in him seems to have been a pretty poor decision for the already struggling franchise.
The Proteas bowler could muster just a couple of wickets this season and was among the most expensive bowlers in the tournament with an economy rate of over 11. It would come across as a big surprise if Kyle Abbott's name is not present in Punjab's list of released players for the following season in 2017.
Dale Steyn - Gujarat Lions
He may be one of the best bowlers in world cricket, but Dale Steyn's performance in recent times has not been up to his high standards. Despite this, new franchise Gujarat Lions brought the great South African on board for a price tag of Rs 2.3 crore. Unfortunately, though, all this trouble was taken to make Steyn play just 1 match throughout the season.
To make matters worse, the 32-year old did not even complete his full quota of 4 overs but only bowled a couple of overs. Seeing the way in which the Lions refrained from including Dale Steyn in the playing XI during the 2016 season, it is better that they release him and allow him to find another franchise.
Kane Williamson - Sunrisers Hyderabad
The fact that Kane Williamson is among the finest batsmen of his generation cannot be denied. However, the Kiwi ace has certainly not looked the part in his 8-match long IPL career so far. Having played just 2 matches last season for Sunrisers Hyderabad, Williamson was one of the players to have been retained by the franchise.
This season, the stylish right-hander smashed a fifty in his very first game and raised hopes of being a star performer for his team. But things quickly started to fall apart for Kane Williamson and he failed to deliver in the next 5 matches that he played. The 2016 IPL champions may be forced to release the champion batsman come the 2017 edition of the tournament.
James Faulkner - Gujarat Lions
In the draft that had been specially arranged for newcomers Gujarat Lions and Rising Pune Supergiants, the Lions chose James Faulkner as one of their 5 core players for a whopping Rs 5.5 crore. Faulkner was expected to create the kind of impact that he had been making for his former side, Rajasthan Royals, but he fell drastically short.
The Australian all-rounder played 7 matches this year and could manage just 77 runs with the bat. His bowling was quite poor, too, as he took only 2 wickets and proved to be very expensive with an economy rate of 9.82. Taking into account his heavy price tag, Gujarat may consider releasing Faulkner in the following season.
Pawan Negi - Delhi Daredevils
Delhi Daredevils must have pinned a lot of hopes on young Pawan Negi when they dished out a monumental Rs 8.5 crore to rope him into their squad. However, their huge expectations from the all-rounder came crashing down as he failed to come good with both bat and ball.
In 8 matches, Negi had a tally of 57 runs and he picked up just 1 wicket in the 9 overs he bowled while conceding 84 runs at 9.33 per over. It turned out to be a disastrous season for the 23-year old and his release from the Daredevils roster next year may actually serve as a blessing in disguise for him.
Glenn Maxwell - Kings XI Punjab
After an unbelievably good season for Kings XI Punjab in the 2014 IPL where he scored 552 runs, Glenn Maxwell was being touted as a hero who would take the tournament to a whole new level. However, he suffered a huge downfall in the season that followed as he could manage just 145 runs in 11 matches.
It was expected that Maxwell will make amends in the 2016 edition of the IPL and restore Punjab's dwindling fortunes. But as luck would have it, it was yet another disappointing season for him as he had a tally of 179 runs from 11 games. To add to it, the Kings finished last on the league table for the second successive season.
Although it may be a big decision to make for the Kings XI Punjab management, they would do quite well to part ways with the enigmatic Aussie all-rounder.
Looking for fast live cricket scores? Download CricRocket and get fast score updates, top-notch commentary in-depth match stats & much more! 🚀☄️
