5 ex-Indian cricketers who would have excelled in the IPL

#2 Ajay Jadeja

Ajay Jadeja

Ajay Jadeja, a former middle-order batsman, was an audacious hitter of the ball and a busy cricketer in the middle overs for India. He played 196 one-day internationals for the country, finishing with 5359 runs including 6 centuries and 30 half-centuries to his name. His strike-rate of close to 70 can be attributed to the position he batted in and most of the time had little time to build the innings. Jadeja had a terrific ability to rotate the strike and play big shots according to the situation, with his innings of 45* of 25 balls against Pakistan in the 1996 World Cup quarterfinals being a prime example of the fact. A good fielder along with street-smart batting abilities, Jadeja would have been a handy bet for any franchise in the IPL.

#3 Mohammad Azharuddin

Mohammad Azharuddin

Mohammad Azharuddin, a former Indian captain, possessed a rare batting talent that allowed him to take rapid strides in Indian cricket. Azhar, started his Test career with 3 centuries in his first 3 games for the country – a record that put him in elite company. He played 334 ODI games for India, scoring 9378 runs including 7 hundred and 58 half-centuries. Coming from a city famous for producing wristy batsman, the Hyderabad-born batsman was known for his stroke-making and attacking brand of cricket. The fact that he was a fine leader of the side in his time adds to his repertoire of cricketing abilities. With fine slip-catching and outstanding ability in the outfield, the former skipper would have possibly started a bidding war between the IPL sides.