IPL: 6 Cricketers to have featured in the same franchise for 8 or more years
The Indian Premier League (IPL) is the place where talent meets opportunity, and has seen some enthralling performances over the years. Some cricketers have become synonymous with certain teams. When someone hears the name Chennai Super Kings, the one player that comes into the everyone's mind is Mahendra Singh Dhoni.
While AB de Villiers is instantly recognized as Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) player and Andre Russell is recognized as Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) player, only a few remember that both these players started with the Delhi Daredevils.
Loyalty is something that is rarely found in franchise-based cricket. But over the course of 11 years, there have been several instances of loyalty. Here are 6 cricketers who have featured in the same franchise for 10 or more years.
#7 Harbhajan Singh - Mumbai Indians (2008- 2017)
Harbhajan Singh may not have been born in Mumbai, but Mumbai will certainly be one of his homes. This statement is not just because of his long stint with Mumbai Indians, but also because Bhajji was part of the famous World Cup win in 2011 which took place in the Wankhede Stadium.
In 2008, Harbhajan Singh was picked by the Mumbai Indians in the first ever auction, and with an injury to Sachin Tendulkar in the early stages of the tournament, Harbhajan was appointed as the captain to the lead the side. He was also the stand-in captain in the Champion League 2011 tournament which saw MI winning the gold for the first time.
In the 137 matches that he represented the team in blue and gold, Harbhajan has taken a total of 127 wickets and has also played some vital knocks with the bat.
The mega-auction in 2018 saw Chennai Super Kings (arch rivals of MI) buying the Turbanator.