IPL 2020: 5 Players who might be playing their final IPL season in upcoming edition

These five players might be playing their final IPL season in 2020.

The IPL 2020 auction will be taking place on 19 December 2019 in Kolkata and the preceding transfer window saw lots of retentions and releases from all the eight franchises. Some of the franchises decided to do a purge in their teams and released upwards of 12 players, while franchises like Chennai Super Kings only released just 5 players.

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Whatever, being the reason, there are some of the players who were retained for the upcoming Indian Premier League season, but it seems that it might be their final outing for the respective franchises in the tournament given their age and other factors. Many of the below-listed players have done extremely well in the tournament and in international cricket, but everything must come to an end.

Therefore, Team COC presents to you five players who might be playing their final IPL season in 2020.

Check out the 5 Players who might be playing their final IPL season in 2020

AMIT MISHRA

Amit Mishra has been one of the best leg-spinners in the Indian Premier League tournament. He has played for various teams like Deccan Chargers, Delhi Daredevils, Delhi Capitals, and Sunrisers Hyderabad. He has 157 wickets to his name in 147 matches so far and is the only bowler to take three hat-tricks in the tournament for three different teams.

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Mishra’s international career saw him take 156 wickets in 68 matches for Team India across formats from 2008- 2017. The 37-year-old leggie played an integral part for Delhi Capitals (DC) in their rebranding of the team and has been retained for the upcoming season as well.

However, with his age and the rise of Nepal’s Sandeep Lamichhane, DC have many other options in the spin department now. This might mean the end of the road in the T20 tournament for the Haryana spinner.

HARBHAJAN SINGH
Harbhajan Singh has not played for India since 2015 and was released by Mumbai Indians after playing for them for a decade in 2018. Chennai Super Kings picked him up in the auction and he played a crucial role in CSK winning the title in 2018 and reaching the finals in 2019.

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However, with him not playing any international and domestic cricket on a regular basis, his skills might not be on the same level as they were in the past. The 39-year-old Punjab player has been trying to branch out by playing in other T20 leagues, given that he had put his name in the Hundred draft, but given that he has not retired officially, he had to take his name back.

Harbhajan has been a brilliant player for India and for MI and CSK in the IPL. He has more than 700 wickets in over 360 international matches. He also has 150 wickets in 160 matches in the Indian Premier League, while winning the IPL title four times with the two franchises. However, with his age and lack of cricket practice, this IPL 2020 might be his last one.

SHANE WATSON

38-year-old former Australia all-rounder Shane Watson has been part of the Indian Premier League for a long time, playing for franchises like Rajasthan Royals, Chennai Super Kings, and Royal Challengers Bangalore. He was the most valuable player of the tournament in 2008 and again in  2013.

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He has 3575 runs from 134 IPL matches with 4 centuries and a best of 117* at a strike rate of 139.53. However, his last two seasons with Chennai Super Kings saw him battling various niggles and injuries and it was only the man-management of MS Dhoni that saw Watson play a majority of matches.

He has already called time on his Big Bash League career and given his battles with knee and shoulder injuries, this IPL 2020 might be his very last for Chennai Super Kings, as the 2021 auction will be a big one with most of the players being put into auction.

AMBATI RAYUDU
Ambati Rayudu has been one of the most rebellious cricketers in the history of Indian cricket. Being peeved at not getting picked for the Indian team, he joined the breakaway Indian Cricket League in 2007 but was granted amnesty by BCCI after the league folded and was brought by Mumbai Indians, with whom he rose to new heights.

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He made his much-awaited India debut in 2013 in ODIs and was given a long run in the team in 2018, at no.4 in the ODI team with an eye on the 2019 World Cup. However, he was ignored twice with Vijay Shankar and Mayank Agarwal being preferred over him, leading to his infamous 3D glasses tweet and subsequent retirement from the game. The 34-year-old Hyderabad batsman reversed his decision to retire and played the limited-overs tournament Syed Mushtaq Ali and Deodhar Trophy for his domestic side.

He has done well for CSK as an opener and in the middle order and was retained before the 2019 auction. But it seems that the problematic cricketer might play his last IPL season in 2020, given that the 2021 auction might be a big one with the franchises planning for their upcoming future.

LASITH MALINGA
Lasith Malinga called time on his ODI career after the end of Sri Lanka’s campaign in the 2019 World Cup, while has said that he will reconsider his decision to retire after the 2020 ICC T20 World Cup in Australia, saying that he still has the desire to play for two more years and wants to participate in the 2021 edition of T20 World Cup as well.

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Malinga has been a true legend of the game in limited-overs cricket with over 300 ODI wickets and 100 T20I wickets to his name. He also picked 101 wickets in just 30 Test matches. He was the first bowler to take 100 and 150 wickets in the Indian Premier League and currently has 170 scalps in 122 matches. His amazing last over in 2019 IPL gave MI their record fourth title.

However, despite losing his speed, Malinga’s cricketing brain helps him stay one step above the rest. He has retired from IPL in 2018 and spent that season as their bowling coach, but made a comeback as a player in 2019, for Mumbai Indians. Despite a successful comeback and retention by his franchise, the upcoming IPL 2020 might be his last given his history with injuries and fitness issues and the fact that he will be almost 38 years when the IPL 2021 will roll in.