IPL 2020:  4 proven match-winners whose performances have declined of late

The Indian Premier League is an annual affair since 2008 and over a thousand cricketers from all over the globe have featured in the tournament. Cricket is a game of form and the players' performance does rise and fall over the years. The ones at their peak do have bad days later and can't remain match-winners forever. Some examples like Gautam Gambhir, Virender Sehwag, Chris Gayle, Shaun Marsh, Pragyan Ojha, Mohit Sharma, and many more who were once match-winners saw a dip in their numbers and ultimately lost their spot in the respective teams.

Let us have a look at 4 cricketers who have lost their shine in the past couple of years.

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#4 Bhuvneshwar Kumar

Bhuvneshwar Kumar started his IPL career for Pune Warriors India back in 2011 and impressed everyone with his economical bowling. He even broke into the Indian Cricket Team in 2012 and started his international career on a high note against Pakistan, displaying his skills with the new ball by swinging it both ways with great control.

Since joining the Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH), the Meerut-born seamer took his IPL career to the next level and tasted a lot of success. The 29-year-old won the purple cap for two back to back seasons (2016 and 2017) and even helped SRH clinch their maiden IPL title in 2016. In a career of 117 matches, Bhuvi has scalped 133 wickets at an impressive economy rate of 7.24 and is the most successful Indian fast bowler in the history of the tournament.

But since the past couple of seasons, SRH's bowling spearhead lost his sharpness, both with the new ball as well as at the death and his wicket-taking ability has dried up. He has been able to pick only 23 wickets from 27 IPL games since 2018 with a poor strike rate of 29 compared to his career number of 19.

Note: All statistics as of January 26, 2020

#3 Robin Uthappa

Robin Uthappa will play for Rajasthan Royals in IPL 2020

The Karnataka batsman has been a part of IPL since its inception and played 177 matches thus far. In his journey, Robin Uthappa has represented many teams like Mumbai Indians (2008), Royal Challengers Bangalore (2009-10), Pune Warriors India (2011-13), and his most successful phase with Kolkata Knight Riders (2014-19).

Uthappa has been a consistent performer for the Kolkata-based franchise and went on to win the orange cap in 2014, leading KKR to their second IPL title. The wicket-keeper batsman has scored over 4400 runs in the tournament at a strike rate of 130, including 24 half-centuries and a top score of 87.

After tasting a lot of success on a consistent basis, the 34-year-old's performance has seen a dip from the past couple of seasons, due to which he was released by KKR ahead of the IPL 2020 auction. Uthappa averaged only 21.93 in IPL 2018 with Dinesh Karthik taking over as the wicket-keeper and his strike declined to just 115 in the 2019 edition with a lone 50+ score each year.

#2 Amit Mishra

Amit Mishra has lost his charm over the years

Amit Mishra tops the list of the number of wickets by an Indian bowler in the history of IPL and is second-best overall just below the Sri Lankan legend Lasith Malinga. In a long career of 147 matches, the veteran leg-spinner has picked up 157 wickets at an economy rate of 7.35, including a five-wicket haul and record three hat-tricks under his belt.

The 37-year-old spinner has always been a wicket-taking option for his captain and has led his team's spin attack throughout his career. In addition to that, he has also managed to tone down the opposition's scoring rate and finished the season with an economy rate of under 7 on five occasions.

After serving as the lead spinner for various IPL franchises, the Delhi-born cricketer has seen a downfall in his performance. Since IPL 2014, there is only one occurrence where Mishra has outnumbered the number of matches by the number of wickets and has even conceded runs at a higher rate. Currently playing for the Delhi Capitals, Mishra is no more their spearhead and is on a verge of losing his spot from the starting XI.

#1 Dwayne Bravo

Bravo was retained by CSK ahead of IPL 2018

Dwayne Bravo has been one of the most successful death-over bowlers in the IPL history and led the Chennai Super Kings' bowling attack for many years. He is currently sitting at the 5th spot in the wickets tally of the IPL.

In a total of 134 matches, the Caribbean all-rounder has scalped 147 wickets at a staggering strike rate of 17.59. He also won the purple cap twice in his journey, in the year 2013 and 2015 and is the only bowler to pick over 30 wickets in an IPL season. Furthermore, he has been handy with the bat as well, scoring 1483 runs at a strike rate of 128, including 5 fifties.

Since the past couple of years, the 36-year-old has had quite an ordinary bout with the ball by his standards. Dwayne Bravo has managed to pick only 25 matches from 28 games and has leaked runs at a poor economy rate of around 9. Coming to IPL 2020, he might play just a supporting role for CSK after being their spearhead for years.