IPL 2013: The under-performing giants

As is usual, the IPL has brought about the expected spate of excellent form. It has also brought forth a torrent of under-performers along with these over-achievers. While some of the names in the former remain almost intact, as if carried forth from where the previous season left off; the latter has seen a few unexpected additions. Not value-additions though. For a few of the under-performers this time round at the IPL include some big names, names that have been otherwise synonymous with consistency and distinction.

And here’s how this list of the biggest under-performers pans out:

Virender Sehwag

Sehwag’s title of ‘Nawab’ seems a thing of the distant past even as the Delhi opener struggles to find his rhythm and balance on the pitches where he was once brutal and unassailable. He’s played seven matches for the Delhi Daredevils and barring a couple of knocks – including his blitzkrieg of the Mumbai Indians – Sehwag’s performances have mostly been blinks and misses. Delhi may have very well lifted themselves up from the bottom of the points table, but both the team and their erstwhile captain have a long way to go in IPL 6.

Abhishek Nayar

He’s regarded to be an all-rounder. His contribution for the Pune Warriors India however has become an almost all-round failure in IPL 6. In eight matches, Nayar has averaged just 11 runs with only two wickets to his claim at an economy rate of over seven runs per over. Pune Warriors India could very well do with contributions from Nayar, considering the manifold talents that led to his purchase by the team owners.

Murali Vijay

Vijay may have impressed everyone with his style and timing in the recently concluded Border-Gavaskar series, but his performance in the IPL remains forgettable at best. In eight matches for the league leaders, Vijay has scored a mere 122 runs with just one fifty to his name. With CSK’s feet firmly entrenched in the play-offs, Murali Vijay would want to make the best of the rest of the 2013 IPL season, if only to regain his suddenly-lost form.

Yuvraj Singh

Comeback king or not, Yuvraj Singh’s performance in the sixth IPL season isn’t really making heads turn his way. With 156 runs scored at an average of just over 22 runs in eight matches, Yuvraj Singh’s dismal run is one of the many problems plaguing the Pune Warriors presently. While Pune’s fans will be still optimistic of Yuvraj’s turnaround, they would be expecting him to do it sooner rather than as an alleviating measure when it’s far too late.

Yusuf Pathan

The Kolkata Knight Riders aren’t exactly having the tournament of their life. Yusuf Pathan, who has played in all of Kolkata’s 11 matches, hasn’t really delivered on his capabilities. Though he top-scored for KKR in their match against the Rajasthan Royals, his performance can still be described – at best – as fluctuating. With a tall order required from the defending champions at this juncture, Pathan will need to address his fluctuating form so as to ensure that his team regains a respectable positioning at the points table, thereby helping them to avoid the absolute humiliation of finishing last, where they stood as champions the year before.

Some may pinpoint the absence of under-par bowlers in this compilation. But in my defence, the sixth season of the IPL has thus far been a batsman’s slugfest. And most of the victories have come with batsmen powering the teams to inviolable score-lines. Having said thus, it only felt right that sub-par batsmen, and not bowlers, were included in this categorisation.