IPL 2020: 3 senior players who changed roles to fit their team’s needs

One of the primary objectives of the Indian Premier League has been to unearth new upcoming talents. The likes of R Ashwin, Jasprit Bumrah, and Hardik Pandya, to name a few, became household names after successful stints in IPL early on in their careers.

This league also allows proven players to change perceptions and reinvent to fit their team needs. Here are the three senior players who have done that for their respective teams in IPL 2020.

#1. Chris Gayle (Kings XI Punjab)

Even though Chris Gayle is considered one of the greatest T20 players of all time, he could not find a place in the team for the first seven matches because of the combination. Kings XI Punjab decided to use the four overseas options in the middle order and bowling, because they had captain KL Rahul and Mayank Agarwal to open the batting.

Both openers looked in great touch, and were getting lots of runs at the top of the order. It was looking unlikely that Gayle would feature in many games this season.

Then, Kings XI Punjab lost a few games in the IPL after being in a great position to win them. At the halfway stage, they had won only one match and were desperate to change their fortunes. Desperate times call for experienced heads, and they decided to bring in veteran Chris Gayle into the mix.

Kings XI Punjab decided not to disturb an opening stand that was doing well right through the tournament. KL Rahul and Mayank Agarwal continued to open, while Gayle got an opportunity to bat at No. 3, a position he had occupied only six times out of his 405 T20 match career. It was a big gamble taken by the team management, but Chris Gayle relished the new role at this stage of his career.

The left-hander finished with 288 runs from 7 matches with three fifties at an average of 41.14 and striking at 137. More importantly, his presence helped KXIP win five games on the trot from the brink of elimination, helping the team mount a last-minute charge to qualify for the IPL 2020 playoffs. KXIP couldn't qualify, but Gayle definitely made his mark.