IPL 2019: Five big money signings who failed in back-to-back seasons

For those who have been following the Indian Premier League (IPL) for a long period of time, the term “Pricetag pressure” is something they wouldn’t be oblivious to. Although it’s not a scientifically proven concept, some of the available statistics have clearly proven that players have found it difficult to get going when a huge price tag is attached to their name.

One of the major ramifications of this heavy price tag is that there’s too much attention on the player and the fans expect him to produce a match-winning contribution pretty much every season. Apart from Gautam Gambhir not many have managed to pay full value to the huge amounts they received through the auction table in the long run and the number of times players have underperformed while receiving such huge paychecks is a scary sign for the franchises.

We have analyzed the performances of some prominent names, who in the past have attracted massive bids or currently are doing the same. These players have clearly been underperforming for their sides and we have made a list of five cricketers who have been underperforming for two consecutive seasons with a huge price label attached to their name.

1. Manish Pandey

Manish Pandey has been with the SRH side for two years now and not on many occasions he made winning contributions to the side like that of David Warner, Rashid Khan or Bhuvneshwar Kumar. His poor run has clearly jolted their middle order and they continue to look fragile in the middle overs with no decent names available.

He registered 284 runs in 15 matches last season at an average of 25.81 and that’s pretty below par for a player who cost the Sunrisers INR 11 crore. Things haven’t changed very much in his second season for the Orange Army, which should dent his chances of getting a further extension with his contract with SRH.

2. Jaydev Unadkat

It still seems a mystery to many as to why Jaydev Unadkat has attracted such high bids in the last two seasons. It goes back to the 2017 season, where he bowled exceptionally for the Rising Pune Supergiant in the death and also picked a hat-trick in Hyderabad against SRH. The Rajasthan Royals expected something similar from him and shelled out 11.5 crores for him.

Unadkat picked up 11 wickets in the last season at an economy of 9.65, which forced the franchise to send him back to auction. They brought him back for a huge price once again. But that was relatively lesser when compared the last season, INR 8.4 crore. His economy this time has been over 12 consistently and is failing to add any considerable value to the unit. It will come as a huge surprise if the Royals retain him for another season.

3. Yuvraj Singh

Yuvraj Singh went for a whopping INR 14 Crore for the 2014 season, with RCB pipping KKR in the auction to earn his services. Unfortunately for the 2011 World Cup winner, the season turned out to be a disaster as the Royal Challengers underperformed and a lot of criticism came his way being the most expensive player. Although he registered a decent 374 runs that season, he was sent back to the auction to open up their purse a bit.

For the second season in a row, Yuvraj’s asking price sky-rocketed as he this time went for a flabbergasting INR 16 crore to the Delhi Daredevils. Things just got worse as the price money tag and lack of cricket at the highest level hindered his performances big time. The Punjab-born all-rounder could only register 248 runs for the Daredevils, who failed to reach the top four by a comprehensive margin.

4. Ben Stokes

Ben Stokes lit up the IPL in his first ever outing in 2017, winning the Most Valuable Player award and repaying full value to his auction price of INR 14.5 crore. After understanding that he is a player capable of handling the pricetag pressure, Rajasthan Royals went all out for him in the auction and won his services for INR 12.5 crore.

He scored just 196 runs with the bat, leaving a huge hole in the middle order and picked just 8 wickets. His recent international form has not been up to the mark as well but his status as the best all-rounder in the world is keeping the Royals interested in him. In the five games he played this season of the IPL, he registered just 76 runs and has been very expensive with the cherry.

5. Dinesh Karthik

Dinesh Karthik currently is doing a fabulous job as the KKR captain, but in the past, he found it very difficult to adjust with the pricetag pressure. In 2014, the Daredevils paid him INR 12.5 crore and in return, the keeper-batsman registered 325 runs at an average less than 25. The Daredevils let him go into the auction for the 2015 edition.

Once again, his asking price was huge as he went for INR 10.5 crore to the Royal Challengers Bangalore. He also had the goodwill as India’s second best keeper batsman at that point in time, which was why the franchises were ready to pay him so much. This time, he had his worst IPL campaign ever, scoring just 141 runs in 16 matches and leaving no option for RCB but to show him the exit doors.

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