5 players who struggled after changing teams in IPL 2016
The Indian Premier League has earned a reputation as a stage which has witnessed some wild swing of fortunes over the years. And the annual jamboree didn’t disappoint one bit in that respect even this season. The season saw Royal Challengers Bangalore script a fantastic turnaround after they were languishing at the bottom of the table to reach the finals.
The same season also saw the most successful IPL captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s new side missing out on the Wooden Spoon by a whisker. Likewise, there were names that were expected to bring their form from last season to set the stage on fire in 2016, but a switch of team didn’t serve them well. Here is a look at some of those names who did amazingly well for their past teams but whose fortunes nosedived as their jersey colours changed in 2016.
#1 James Faulkner – Gujarat Lions
The Ausralian has emerged as one of the top all-rounders in the shorter versions of the game in the last couple of years. His previous franchise Rajasthan Royals reaped rewards by picking him up in his prime and Faulkner served the team more than well with both the bat and ball. The newly formed Gujarat Lions, thus, were not wrong in pinning big hopes on the Tasmanian when they bought him at the pre-auctions.
But in the orange jersey of Gujarat Lions, Faulkner looked far from his best. He was neither the potent force with the ball that he used to be for Royals, nor the finisher that he has become for Australia in recent times. Captain Suresh Raina persisted with him for the first seven matches but he warmed the bench for the latter part of the tournament as in those seven matches Faulkner had just two wickets to show against his name.