The Indian Premier League has seen many players bought and sold in the auctions over the years. But some of the players have been fortunate to be retained by their franchises over and over, as they have performed in a big way for them and contributed to their teams win.
We bring to you 6 such players that have played their whole IPL career for just one franchise so far.
Virat Kohli
Virat Kohli was a hot property during the first IPL player's
selection in 2008 because of his U-19 World Cup win. He was immediately picked
up by Royal Challengers Bangalore out of the auction as he was still uncapped
at the time. He performed well for the first three years and in 2011, he was
the only player retained by the RCB, as they decided to build their team around
Kohli. He was also made captain of the side in IPL 2014 and has taken the side
from strength to strength with not only his leadership, but also his batting as
he had a dream 2016 season with 900+ runs and 4 centuries in the season.
Shaun Marsh
Australian opener Shaun Marsh was bought by Kings XI Punjab
in 2008 and despite missing the first four matches of the tournament, he was able
to score 616 runs in just 11 matches including a hundred in the season. since then, he has represented the Punjab franchise and amassed over 2000 runs for
the team and Punjab will hope that he is available for them for the full
season in 2017. He had played only 6 matches in 2016, as a persistent back problem caused him to leave the tournament early.
Ambati Rayudu
Ambati Rayudu was one of the first players who were granted
amnesty after he played for the rival T20 league, the ICL in 2007. Having
played out the required period in domestic circuit, Rayudu was made available
in the player auction in 2010 and was picked up by Mumbai Indians. He has since
played over 100 matches for Mumbai team and even kept wickets for a season when
the team required him to do so. His success in IPL also enabled him to
represent the Indian team in limited overs format and he has scored 2 centuries
for the India team in ODIs so far.
Harbhajan Singh
Harbhajan Singh was the top pick for Mumbai Indians in the inaugural
season and since then; he has taken more than 100 wickets for the team. He
captained the Mumbai team to a Champions League trophy win in 2011, but turned
down the captaincy role for the team in IPL. Despite being in and out on the
Indian team ever since winning the World Cup in 2011, he has been the constant
in the Mumbai Indians team in IPL and is one of the leaders in the team that
has won the tournament in 2013 and 2015.
Kieron Pollard
Kieron Pollard made his debut in IPL in 2010 and since then,
he has being one of the core members of the Mumbai Indians team. He has been called upon by the Mumbai Indians
to give the innings impetus in the last overs of the match or take the team
beyond the finishing line in a tense chase. He has close to 2000 runs in the
tournament for the team. Also his slow medium pacers have been a bonus for the
team as he has broken an important partnership more often than not. Mumbai will be looking forward to play Pollard at the top of the order this year to make full use of his potential.
Lasith Malinga
Lasith Malinga is the top most wicket taker in the IPL overall. He made his debut for Mumbai Indians in 2009 and was the top most wicket taker in the 2011 season. Malinga is often used in the last 10 overs in the IPL and his yorkers and slower balls have been mighty effective in keeping the opposition to a low total or defending any total that Mumbai batsmen put on the board. His knee injuries kept him out of the last IPL, but he is fit and raring to go in the IPL 2017. He will be looking to add to his 143 wickets (the most) in IPL this coming season.
