IPL 2020: 5 players who were unlucky to be released by their franchises
It was quite a busy start to the weekend in the context of the 13th edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) scheduled to take place next year. As all the teams confirmed their list of released and retained players, it also marked the beginning of the countdown for the IPL auction next month in Kolkata.
The Royal Challengers Bangalore and Rajasthan Royals, two teams which witnessed an awful season in 2019 looked to revamp their team by releasing most of the players who were an integral part of the team.
While most of the teams released players who didn't offer great returns in the last two seasons, there were a few surprise releases that didn't justify the logic. However, it might have happened considering the dynamics of this process of buying more players in the IPL auction.
Some of the players who were the key members for their side were also released and could be in major demand at the auction. With a host of players now released by the franchises, it will only offer more excitement in what was assumed to be a mini-auction at the onset.
Here's a look at 5 such players who didn't deserve to be released ahead of the player auction in December.
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#5 Sam Curran
The most expensive buy for the Kings XI Punjab in IPL 2019, Sam Curran made his first-ever IPL appearance with a high price-tag accompanying his profile. A lot was riding on the English all-rounder, with the Kings XI expecting him to deliver as per his reputation that helped him to earn such a hefty bid in the IPL auction.
To everybody's expectations, Curran played a decent hand in his maiden IPL outing in 2019. In nine matches for the franchise, the 22-year old played majorly as a bowler and managed to pick 10 wickets. He even displayed his ability to tonk the ball with a match-winning 55 against the Kolkata Knight Riders at Mohali.
Bowling for the first time in the Indian conditions that generally don't suit his style of bowling, Curran adapted well to bowl good lines while sticking to his strengths. His hat-trick against Delhi Capitals was one of the major highlights during his stint at Punjab for the very first time in the league.
Despite a decent season, he was released ahead of the auction next month. He would consider himself unucky even when he showed the promise to emerge as a real match winner for Kings XI.