6 Players who spent most seasons on the bench before making IPL debut

The IPL has been a terrific platform for the young cricketing talents to showcase their skills at the higher level of the game. Over the years, the tournament has produced many talents to the international circuit and the current Indian stars like Jasprit Bumrah, Hardik Pandya and many more also came into the public limelight after some stunning performances for their respective IPL franchises.

For a young player to get a chance in the playing XI, he has to warm the bench patiently and have to wait for a chance to prove his worth in the cash-rich league. Sitting on the bench for the majority of the season doesn’t exactly sound like much fun but it has been a harsh reality for the youngsters in the early days of their cricketing career.

These players know the art of staying patient while warming the benches. Reckon you know which players spent the most amount of time on the bench in the Indian Premier League till now?

Read on to find out the IPL list: –

1. Baba Aparajith (5 seasons)

The Tamil Nadu aspiring all-rounder came into the public limelight after some tremendous performances in the 2012 U19 World Cup. He played a crucial role in India’s victorious campaign in that tournament. Impressed with his talent the Chennai-based franchise bought him in the auction ahead of IPL 2013.

The Chennai Super Kings franchise are the most successful team in the history of the IPL and Baba failed to feature in the playing XI as the team was already filled with some star players. He was benched up to the 2015 season before the franchise got banned from the IPL due to spot-fixing allegations. 

He was later bought by the Rising Pune Supergiant franchise ahead of IPL 2016 which was also captained by the then Indian skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni. Baba was again benched for two seasons by the now-defunct Pune franchise and found no buyers ahead of IPL 2018. Currently the 26-year-old is a regular member of the Tamil Nadu domestic side and soon he can knock on the doors of the IPL selectors by performing well for his domestic team.

2. Siddhesh Lad (4 seasons)

The Mumbai right-handed batsman is a consistent performer in the Ranji Trophy for his domestic team. He made his first-class debut in the 2013 season and soon started winning matches for his domestic side by playing a finisher‘s role batting down the order. 

Due to his consistent performances in the domestic circuit, Lad was bought in by the Mumbai Indians franchise ahead of IPL 2015. Lad didn’t get a chance in the XI of the star-studded team and warmed the bench for four seasons before getting to play in 2019 IPL when the skipper Rohit Sharma was injured and rested for a single match against Kings XI Punjab. 

It became Lad’s lone appearance in the cash-rich league till now and he scored 15 runs in that match opening the innings for his franchise. He was released by the Mumbai Indians franchise ahead of IPL 2020 and the Kolkata Knight Riders bought him in the auction. With the Knights struggling to form a perfect combination in the ongoing season, we can see Lad soon in action in the upcoming matches.

3. Sandeep Warrier (3 seasons)

Sandeep Warrier is a quality right-arm pacer from Kerala and made his first-class debut against Goa back in 2012. His ability to swing the ball in both directions made him an integral member of Kerala’s domestic squad and he has picked more than 100 wickets in first-class cricket. 

Sandeep was bought by the most celebrated team Royal Challengers Bangalore in the auction ahead of IPL 2013 but was benched for three years before the team released him before IPL 2016. Sandeep failed to grab the attention of the franchise in the 2016 auction and went unsold in that season.

Again in 2019, he was bought by the Kolkata Knight Riders and due to the injuries of their leading pacers, Sandeep made his IPL debut for the in their fourth game of the season against Mumbai Indians and played two more games in that season. He also found a place in the eleven in the first match of the season but failed to perform and was dropped from the second match.

4. CM Gautam (3 seasons)

The 34-year-old, CM Gautam, played for the Karnataka cricket team in the Indian first-class cricket and moved to Goa later and captained them for some time in the domestic circuit. He is a right-handed wicket-keeping batsman and was the second-highest run-getter for Karnataka in the 2013-2014 Ranji season. 

Impressed with his batting skills, the Bangalore-based franchise Royal Challengers Bangalore bought him in the auction ahead of IPL 2009 and without getting a match under his belt he was dropped for the next season by RCB. He was again bought by the Bangalore franchise ahead of IPL 2011 and was again benched for two seasons.

His impressive batting was rewarded by the Delhi Daredevils who signed a one-year contract with him in 2013. In 13 IPL games he played in his career, Gautam scored 169 runs at a strike rate of 116.7. In 2019 he was arrested for fixing allegations in KPL and Goa sacked him from the team.

5. Sheldon Jackson (3 seasons)

The Saurashtra wicket-keeping batsman came into the public limelight after some impressive performances for his domestic side back in 2012. He became his side’s second-highest run-getter in the 2012 domestic season and scored the most number of hundreds in that season for his team. 

He was also impressive in the following season and the Royal Challengers Bangalore roped him into their squad for the 2013 IPL season. But he failed to get a match that season and was dropped by the franchise for the next season 

In 2015, Kolkata Knight Riders bought him ahead of the season and benched him for two successive seasons in 2015 and 2016. Jackson made his IPL debut and played four matches in the 2017 season scoring 38 runs at a strike rate of 122.58. Later he went unsold in the auction ahead of IPL 2018.

6. Kuldeep Yadav (3 seasons)

The current Indian left-arm spinner warmed the bench in the cash-rich league for three years before he made his debut for the Kolkata Knight Riders in IPL 2016. He was bought in by the Mumbai Indians franchise ahead of IPL 2012 but didn’t include him in the playing eleven that season. 

In the 2013 IPL auction, he went unsold and was picked by the Kolkata-based franchise ahead of IPL 2014. He was again benched for two more seasons with the likes of Sunil Narine, Brad Hogg, and Piyush Chawla in their squad. 

He made his IPL debut in the second match of the 2016 season against Mumbai Indians and played two more games and picked up a total of six wickets that season. Later he became an integral part of the franchise and is a regular member of the Indian cricket team in all formats. 

~Written by Uday Gurugubelli