The Indian Premier League is the biggest stage in world cricket. If you have performed well on this stage, you will become a star. However, that’s not the end of the story, as you will have to keep performing consistently to reach the international level, as these cricketers realized too late.
Some of them, which we will now take a look at in this article, will always be known as the ‘one-season wonders’ as they performed well in one season only to fizzle out in the next.
Here are the one-season wonders of IPL history. You can also predict on one-time wonders of 2024 and bet on the respective teams, through online IPL betting.
Who Are the Famous One-Season Wonders in IPL History?
We have closed in on five players. We will begin with Swapnil Asnodkar before moving on to Paul Valthaty. After the duo, we will move to Manvinder Bisla, after which we will take a look at Manpreet Gony and Saurabh Tiwary.
Swapnil Asnodkar:
One of the key players in Rajasthan Royals’ inaugural IPL win, Asnodkar became the most talked-about young Indian player as the team went on to win the trophy in 2008.
- He himself opened the innings and went on to account for 311 runs in nine games, which had two fifties.
- But then the tournament shifted to South Africa, and this Goan boy struggled on the bouncy pitches of the Rainbow Nation.
- As a result, he could only score 98 runs in eight games. In 2010, he played just a couple of matches where he scored five runs.
- By the time 2011 came, he was on the sidelines and was let go after playing just one match where he scored nine runs.
Paul Valthaty:
Valthaty burst onto the IPL scene after his scintillating century against the Chennai Super Kings in 2011:
- That season, he went on to smash 463 runs in 14 games, which also had a couple of fifties, and he ended up being the sixth-highest run scorer.
- But the fall came much sooner, even before anyone could have anticipated it.
- In 2012, he managed just 30 runs in six matches with a lowly average of 5, which meant his end was near.
- In 2013, he was given just one game where he scored six runs, after which he was let go.
Manvinder Bisla:
Bisla created a ripple in the Kolkata Knight Riders’ fan base with his knock in the 2012 final against CSK where he smashed 89 runs off 48 balls.
- But his fan base soon evaporated thanks to an unfortunate turn of events.
- Bisla failed to get many games in the 2014 season despite scoring 255 runs in 2013 which had two fifties.
- It was Robin Uthappa who was made the Keeper and as a result, Bisla warmed the bench.
- He played just 1 game and scored 3 runs, which was the end of his KKR career as he was let go.
- He landed at RCB in 2015, but by this time, his career seemed to be on the wane as he was given just 2 games where he scored 37 runs. This turned out to be his last IPL season.
Manpreet Gony:
Gony became the first CSK bowler to be groomed under skipper MS Dhoni. A virtual nobody, Gony went on to become a sensation:
- As CSK reached the final in 2008, Gony was the sensation, picking up 17 wickets in 16 games.
- But on the bouncy pitches of South Africa, he failed to deliver, picking up five wickets in seven games.
- Following this, he couldn’t get any regular games and eventually faded away in 2013.
- He did make a comeback in 2017, playing just one match for the Gujarat Lions which turned out to be his last IPL match.
Saurabh Tiwary:
Unlike some of his contemporaries here, Tiwary went on to play the tournament until 2021.
- But he never quite made his bat do the talking like he did in 2010, playing for the Mumbai Indians.
- That season, Tiwary batted at 3 and went on to account for 419 runs, including 3 fifties.
- Thanks to this performance, RCB bought him for INR 1.6 crore, but he was never the same person.
- He played every IPL season until 2021, performing short of his potential every time.
- He went unsold in the 2022 mega auction which effectively ended his IPL career.
Final Thoughts:
Performing in the IPL can be a stiff task, as the above-mentioned five names found out. With the pressure of fans, and the huge price tag that they attracted in auctions, it became difficult to maintain the momentum.
Such is the cutthroat world of the IPL that, except for Tiwary, who kept on playing till 2021, others were let go long before. Some of them also became victims of poor luck. For instance, Bisla had a good season in 2013 but got just one game despite being retained as Robin Uthappa was now donning the gloves.
Changes in pitch conditions also created trouble for someone like Swapnil Asnodkar and Manpreet Gony, who couldn’t repeat their 2008 exploits on the bouncy pitches of South Africa, where the tournament was being played in 2009.