IPL 2021: 5 players who could disappoint the most

The world's biggest T20 league is just a few days away! The IPL extravaganza is set to start on the 9th of April with heavyweights Mumbai Indians taking on a new-look Royal Challengers Bangalore in Chennai.

All the teams have a strong squad on paper and there are no clear-cut favorites as such. There has been a strong demand for overseas fast bowlers and the franchises splurged a huge amount of money on them in the IPL 2021 auction. There will be huge expectations from them to justify their price tag.

However, some players could falter with rising expectations and conjure up disappointing performances. On that note, we take a look at the five players who could be the most disappointing.

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#1 Piyush Chawla - CSK

MI might have made a huge blunder in signing Piyush Chawla

Piyush Chawla, the 32-year-old leg-spinner, is one of the top wicket-takers in IPL history. However, the last time he picked up more than 15 wickets in a season was back in 2012. Despite a massive decline in his performances, Mumbai Indians acquired him for a price of INR 2.40 crore.

Playing for Chennai Super Kings last season, Piyush Chawla only managed 6 wickets from 7 matches at a poor economy rate of 9.09. With such poor returns, MI might have made a huge blunder in signing Piyush Chawla.

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#2 Tom Curran - DC

Tom Curran was roped in by Delhi Capitals for a massive INR 5.25 crore amount after an intense bidding war with Sunrisers Hyderabad. The all-rounder from England has been shaky with his bowling and has conceded way too many runs in the death overs.

He gave away 208 runs from just 5 matches at an economy rate of 11.08 last season playing for Rajasthan Royals. Though he can play big shots with the bat, he has never been consistent and reliable enough.

Roping in Tom Curran could prove to be a disastrous move for Delhi Capitals.

#3 Kedar Jadhav - SRH

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Kedar Jadhav was sold to Sunrisers Hyderabad at his base price of INR 2 crore in the second round of the IPL 2021 auction. Jadhav hasn't looked comfortable enough in the middle over the past couple of seasons, even throwing his wicket away cheaply.

He was one of the weakest links in CSK's squad last season, playing too many dot balls irrespective of the match situation. Jadhav scored just 62 runs from eight matches at an unacceptable T20 strike-rate of 93.93.

With Sunrisers Hyderabad already lacking big-hitters in their squad, playing Kedar Jadhav in the XI could further add to their woes.

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#4 Glenn Maxwell - RCB

Glenn Maxwell was one of the costliest players at the 2021 IPL auction. He was picked up by Royal Challengers Bangalore for a jaw-dropping INR 14.25 crore. Although Glenn Maxwell has been in stellar form in international cricket, he has never been able to replicate that in IPL and has had several disappointing seasons now.

Despite being a power-hitter, Maxwell has found it hard to adjust to the Indian pitches. Maxwell scored a meager 108 runs from 13 matches at an average of 15.42, without scoring a single six last season for KXIP.

RCB being over-dependent on Glenn Maxwell to deliver the goods could prove to be a fatal move.

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#5 Pawan Negi - KKR

Pawan Negi has been one of the most underperforming cricketers in IPL history. Even with no significant outings to his name, he has been a part of every season since 2012. Pawan Negi was acquired by Kolkata Knight Riders at his base price of INR 50 lakhs.

Pawan Negi's line and lengths have been easily read by the batsmen and he hasn't offered much turn even on spin-friendly tracks. In the 50 matches he has played in IPL, he has only scored 365 runs and taken 34 wickets.