IPL 2018: 3 former players that Mumbai Indians must have regretted releasing

Mumbai Indians had another thrilling season where they kept their finger crossed until the very last match of the season. Like every other year, Mumbai Indians failed to win in the initial half of the tournament but shifted their gears to recover in the 2nd half.

From lying at the bottom of the table, they steadily rose to the 4th position on the points table in the closing days of the league stage. They were well in the tournament until the very last match where they were beaten by Delhi Daredevils and were knocked out.

Here are the three players who were part of the Mumbai Indians team in the 2017 season whom the team must have regretted letting go off after seeing their performance this year:

---

#3 Nitish Rana

Nitish Rana, the Delhi batsman impressed everyone with his remarkable performance for the Mumbai Indians in the 2017 season. He played several match-winning knocks for the team in the initial half of the season and played a crucial role in Mumbai Indians reaching the final of the tournament.

In the 2017 season, he scored 333 runs in 13 matches at an average of 30.27 and a strike rate of 126.13. He was not retained by the franchise due to retention constraints and was thus part of the auction pool.

Kolkata Knight Riders bought him at a price of Rs. 3.4 crore after an engaging round of bidding with Mumbai Indians, his previous team.

In the just concluded season, Rana was a vital member of the Knight Riders team. In the first 5 matches of the season, he scored 162 runs at an average of 40.50 and a strike rate of 138.46 and thus played a big role in his team winning the initial matches.

Overall, he scored 304 runs in 15 matches at an average of 23.38 and a strike rate of 131.03. He was handy at times with the ball and took 4 wickets in the 37 balls that he bowled in the season.

#2 Ambati Rayudu

Ambati Rayudu was one of the most consistent batsmen in the tournament. He played a prominent role in Chennai Super Kings finishing 2nd on the points table and ultimately winning the title.

Chennai Super Kings bought Rayudu for a price of Rs. 2.2 crore after engaging in a bidding war which was short-lived. Bought at such a low price, Rayudu has paid back every penny with his fantastic performance.

In the season, he scored 602 runs at an average of 43.00 and a strike rate of 149.75. He finished 4th on the list of highest run scorers. He scored a century and 3 fifties in the season.

Rayudu who used to be a regular in the Indian team has been sitting out of internationals for close to 2 years now. On the back of his magnificent performance in the IPL, he was immediately rewarded with a call-up to the ODI team for the tour of England.

#1 Jos Buttler

Jos Buttler, the English wicketkeeper-batsman was at his best for the Rajasthan Royals. Buttler had an above average season for Mumbai Indians in 2017 but the team could not retain him owing to the retention constraints.

Although Mumbai Indians fought hard in the auction to get him back but lost to Rajasthan Royals who bought him for Rs. 4.4 crore. Buttler had a below average first half of the tournament but he shifted the gears in the match against Delhi Daredevils.

His scores in the last 7 innings are 67, 51, 82, 95*, 94*, 39. He scored 5 consecutive fifties to equal the record held by Virender Sehwag. Overall in the season, he scored 548 runs at an average of 54.80 and a strike rate of 155.24. He ended up 6th on the list of the highest run scorers.

Buttler successfully marched his team into the playoffs of the tournament but unfortunately left for England before the playoffs began owing to his international commitments. Had he been part of the team, Rajasthan may have chased down the target against Kolkata Knight Riders in the Eliminator.