Shardul Thakur

Punjab Kings picked up Shardul Thakur in the IPL 2014 auction. But such was his fate that he would get just one game in two seasons. Despite having an excellent Ranji Trophy season, Thakur was ignored, and he vented his ire on Twitter, mocking the management.

He was released and didn’t play a match in the 2016 season. He finally got a fresh lease of life in 2017 when Rising Pune Supergiants, who came in as a replacement for Chennai Super Kings, gave him a chance. He took 11 wickets, and MS Dhoni, the skipper, was impressed and brought him to Chennai the next year as the franchise returned after serving a two-year ban. CSK paid him ₹2.6 crore, and the Mumbaikar returned the favor by picking up 18 wickets.

In the 2019 season, his performance dropped, as he picked up only eight wickets. Nevertheless, the franchise continued to show faith, and he finally delivered in 2021, accounting for 21 wickets, helping the team win the IPL trophy.

He played a crucial role in the final, registering figures of 3/38. He broke the stand between Shubman Gill and Venkatesh Iyer; the duo had threatened to take the game away from CSK.

Ahead of the 2022 mega auction, he was released by CSK and bought by Delhi Capitals for ₹10.75 crore. In 2023, he played for KKR. But he took only seven wickets in 11 outings, after which he was released. In 2024, he is back at CSK for ₹4 crore.