Booked on the other flight
Eleven deserving IPL stars who missed out on the World Twenty20
Kanishkaa Balachandran
28-May-2009
The small interval between the two tournaments and the deadline in the announcement of squads has denied several IPL stars the chance to head to England for the World Twenty20. Cricinfo lists XI unlucky players who missed out - or only stand a chance of making their national squads if emergency replacements are sought
Little did Royal Challengers Bangalore realise that the player they had transferred from Mumbai Indians and then benched for close to a month, would go on to become the first Indian IPL centurion. Pandey's aggressive batting was well known in domestic and Under-19 circles, but he was an unknown face to the rest of the world - till May 21. Sent to open, he lit up the Centurion sky with an array of improvised shots through the on side, and probably left punters in complete disbelief when he brought up three figures. In the semi-final, he entertained with graceful shots through the off side, alerting everyone that he could be the fresh face next time the Indian selectors sit down to pick a Twenty20 squad.
Considering Smith's trigger-happy batting, it was a surprise he wasn't an automatic shoo-in for West Indies' Twenty20 squad. Deccan Chargers sensed that his talent had to come good somewhere when they acquired him from Mumbai. It turned out to be a very smart move. Smith was the ideal remedy for top-order wobbles and some of his flicks over the on side, with minimal follow-through, were a sight to behold. Those intimidatory tactics nearly turned the tables on Chennai in a freakish passage of play in East London. Too bad, though, that he won't be around to lift West Indies' sagging morale in England.
Open the bowling with a spinner at your own peril when Ojha's at the crease. Smacking a six before the spectators could barely settle down in their seats became Ojha's USP in the IPL. Swapnil Asnodkar's failures demanded a change at the top and Ojha stepped into the breach with immediate success, smashing 68 off 51 balls against Punjab. Though he didn't enjoy the consistency he would have liked, he was one of the finds for Rajasthan this season. His role as a wicketkeeper makes him a useful allrounder to have in the squad.
Hodge's performance was the one silver lining in a miserable campaign for Kolkata. After a quiet start, Hodge's form picked up during the middle stages of the tournament, as he notched up a few seventies - though not all came in winning causes. His unbeaten 71 against Chennai ensured Kolkata's first outright win (without the assistance of Duckworth-Lewis) and the highest successful chase in the tournament. Hodge has never really enjoyed a consistent run with Australia and has been the country's nearly man for long. The question is, does he have enough time left in his career to shed that tag?
An ordinary start to the series prompted Chennai to urgently reshuffle their bowling attack, and Jakati's debut performance left everyone wondering why he was missing in action last year and benched for the first six games in 2009. He left Tillakaratne Dilshan dazed when the ball spun from outside leg, breached his hopeful prod and took the middle stump. That was Jakati's maiden IPL wicket, and he went on to take four in all in that game against Delhi, before repeating the feat against Deccan. That overnight-sensation performance camouflaged the years of toil on the domestic circuit for one of the more unfancied teams, Goa.
Harris doesn't have the figures to back his case, but his double-wicket (Gautam Gambhir and David Warner) maiden in the first over of the semi-final derailed Delhi's hopes of making it to the summit clash. Harris' opening over in the final was a maiden as well, priceless in the context of the eventual result. His knowledge of English conditions - as an overseas professional with Sussex - would have made him an asset during the World Twenty20, but the selectors made no room for Twenty20 specialists or relatively new faces.
Langeveldt's 3 for 15 - in his only appearance - not only stung Rajasthan Royals but also the Kolkata team management for having benched him till the team's final game. He struck with a wicket off his first ball and rattled the top order in what was the team's most telling performance in the field. It's another matter that he hurt his shoulder after the game - in an instance of injury added to the insult of not being picked in the South Africa squad despite an impressive limited-overs record.
Matches - 13
Runs - 193
Strike rate - 126.97
Runs - 193
Strike rate - 126.97
Nayar was one of the new faces in the probables squad for the World Twenty20 squad based on his IPL performance last year for the Mumbai Indians, but he failed to make the cut after the selectors opted for familiar faces. His potential as a Twenty20 player - his attacking batting style is modelled on Lance Klusener's, and he is a useful seam bowler - is without doubt, although his performance this year wasn't robust enough to guarantee a spot in India's Twenty20 line-up. Nevertheless, he proved himself with a fighting 35 against Rajasthan, which all but took Mumbai past the finish line from a seemingly hopeless situation.
Patchy performances cost him a regular place in the Indian squad, but Karthik gave a good account of himself in the IPL, particularly with the bat, for the Delhi Daredevils. He stitched together crucial partnerships with the strong middle order, and bailed the team out of trouble when quick runs were needed. His 17 dismissals were only one behind the tournament leader, Adam Gilchrist. India bravely opted not to send a reserve wicketkeeper to England. Should the need arise, Karthik had better get ready to hop on that plane.
Returning to his hometown side after a stint with Mumbai in last year's IPL, the injury-prone Nehra emerged Delhi's best bowler this season with 19 wickets. He picked up at least one wicket in each of his 13 matches, and was an idea foil to Dirk Nannes, Delhi's overseas star who benched Glenn McGrath. Nehra was very effective with his variations, which helped in keeping the runs down. Nehra has been slowly slipping into the ranks of the forgotten men of Indian cricket, but this performance should give his career a boost. With Zaheer Khan and RP Singh breathing fire, however, it will be a challenge slotting this left-armer in.
Munaf was axed from the Twenty20 squad that played in New Zealand, but he responded with a spirited performance for Rajasthan, leading their wicket charts. He was Shane Warne's trusted aide in the nailbiter against Mumbai, when they needed just four off the last over. Without attempting anything flashy, Munaf fired it in full and made the tail sing to his tunes; and when the victory was achieved, it sparked a wild celebration. He may have a chance to sneak into India's side if Zaheer fails to recover from his shoulder injury.
Kanishkaa Balachandran is a sub-editor at Cricinfo