IPL 2019: 5 players could be playing their last IPL season

#4 Shane Watson

Shane Watson
Shane Watson

The all-rounder from Australia has featured in various T20 leagues despite retiring from international cricket in 2015. Watson began with Rajasthan Royals in the inaugural IPL season in 2008. He was the star performer of the side during their victorious campaign as he won the Player of the Tournament award.

Last year, when Chennai Super Kings returned to the IPL, they roped in Shane Watson from the auction. At 37, Watson defied age with some great performance with the bat and ball. He played a significant role with a century in the final that helped the MS Dhoni-led side to clinch their third title.

But age is catching up on the right-hander. Watson will be 38 next year. Whether he returns next year to India would depend on his performance this season. Contrary to his early days, Watson is primarily contributing with the bat and hardly bowls. If he doesn’t have a good season, we might see the last of him in the league.

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Imran Tahir: 5 players could be playing their last IPL season
Imran Tahir
The 12th edition of Indian Premier League is upon us. The excitement is at its peak as the fans now get divided to support the 8 different city-based franchises. It promises to be one heck of a tournament. While there are some exciting young talents itching to showcase their talent on the big stage, there are some who could be on the verge of finishing their IPL careers. Age does take its toll and it could be making an impact on some of the big names in world cricket.

Let's have a look the players could make their final IPL appearance

#5 Imran Tahir

Imran Tahir, over the years, has proved to be a world-class bowler. He has bamboozled many batsmen with his tricky spin. South Africa also went on to become the world No.1 bowler in the shortest format of the game. Tahir has proved to be a brilliant bowler and an asset to the team he represented. But that was not the case when he played for Chennai Super Kings last year. The leg-spinner bagged 6 wickets in 6 matches with an economy of 9.09 and an average of 22.26. With Tahir turning 40 this month, it would not be a surprise if CSK let go of him before the 2020 auction. This edition will be Tahir’s 6th appearance and probably the last in the IPL.

#4 Shane Watson

Shane Watson
Shane Watson
The all-rounder from Australia has featured in various T20 leagues despite retiring from international cricket in 2015. Watson began with Rajasthan Royals in the inaugural IPL season in 2008. He was the star performer of the side during their victorious campaign as he won the Player of the Tournament award. Last year, when Chennai Super Kings returned to the IPL, they roped in Shane Watson from the auction. At 37, Watson defied age with some great performance with the bat and ball. He played a significant role with a century in the final that helped the MS Dhoni-led side to clinch their third title. But age is catching up on the right-hander. Watson will be 38 next year. Whether he returns next year to India would depend on his performance this season. Contrary to his early days, Watson is primarily contributing with the bat and hardly bowls. If he doesn’t have a good season, we might see the last of him in the league.

#3 Lasith Malinga

Lasith Malinga, leading wicket taker in IPL
Lasith Malinga, leading wicket-taker in IPL
Since the inception of the Indian Premier League, Lasith Malinga has only represented the Mumbai Indians. He has been a star performer for the franchise winning three titles with the Men in Blue. He is also the highest wicket-taker of the IPL with 154 scalps to his name at the economy of 6.86. However, Malinga started to lose his form and as a result, failed to attract any buyer during the 2018 IPL auction. Later on, Mumbai Indians appointed him as a bowling mentor. He is back once again for the blues on the back of some notable performance for his national side. But, IPL 2019 is likely to be his last season as the pacer is likely to announce his retirement after the ICC Cricket World Cup. MI has groomed Jasprit Bumrah as the death-overs specialist and so, Malinga might make his last appearance this season.

#2 Chris Gayle

Chris Gayle
Chris Gayle
One of the most feared batsmen in the current era, Chris Gayle will play for Kings XI Punjab this year. He has been one of the legends of the IPL after accumulating 3994 runs from 111 innings. The giant cricketer started his journey in IPL with Kolkata knight riders. However, he changed his base to Royal Challengers Bangalore in the 2011 edition. His love affair with RCB for 7 years came to an end in the last season when KXIP availed his services. He was successful with the franchise scoring 368 runs, including a hundred. His recent form for Windies has also been great and the Punjab franchise would hope to see him deliver the goods in India as well. But all good things come to an end and so could Gayle’s career in IPL be as the Caribbean batsman turns 40 this year.

#1 Yuvraj Singh

Yuvraj Singh, IPL 2019 Squads
Yuvraj Singh
Yuvraj Singh has been one of the glorious names in Indian cricket. He was an architect for the MS Dhoni-led Indian side that won the 2007 World T20 and 2011 ODI World Cup. The golden boy from Punjab was the team's icon player in the first two IPL seasons. However, he wasn’t that successful while playing for Kings XI Punjab. In the auctions that followed, he topped the headlines by grabbing big bucks but kept failing for various teams. After going unsold in initial stage of the auction last year, Mumbai Indians bought the veteran batsman for his base price. Considering his form in recent times and age, this could be the final IPL season for Yuvraj Singh.