IPL 2023: 5 Players who flopped last season but currently are in top form - Cricket Winner

In last year’s IPL, many well-known players underperformed. Marquee names like Rohit Sharma, Kane Williamson and Pollard had dreadful seasons. The emerging talents from IPL 2021- Venkatesh Iyer and Varun Chakravarthy were gloomy for KKR. Some laudable impactful names like Ravindra Jadeja and Mohammed Siraj also looked off-colour.

But before IPL 2023, most of these mentioned players look in the top form currently. Already in 2023, these cricketers have thrived in both international and domestic cricket. Hopefully, they’ll be expected to give a blockbuster season for their respective franchises.

Therefore in this list, let’s check out 5 players who flopped last season but currently are in top form.

1. Virat Kohli

Well, King Kohli, for RCB last year had a decent season. At least by his set standards, Virat didn’t even reach 400 runs. Cumulatively, the former RCB skipper scored 341 runs from 16 games at an average of 22.73. Both his average and strike rate (115.99) were the lowest compared to his last six IPL seasons. The only silver lining was his two fifty-plus scores.

However, since the 2022 Asia Cup, this 34-year legend has found his old batting form back. In the 2022 T20 World Cup, Kohli emerged as the highest run-scorer (M-6, R-296, AVG-98.67). Presently in ODIs in 2023, the cricketer is back averaging above fifty (53.37) along with resuming his constant three-digit scores. Truly for RCB, Kohli is expected to exhibit his best like the 2016 season.

Unsurprisingly, in his opening game, the opener also had a ball of a time against MI bowlers. Overall his 82* from 49 balls indeed is a sign that this behemoth might even fetch the IPL 2023’s orange cap.

Mayank Agarwal

Before IPL 2022, Mayank was impressively scoring runs for Punjab. The cricketer in both IPL 2020 and 2021 seasons had amassed 400-plus runs twice. As a reliable top-order batter, Mayank cumulatively averaged almost 40 and was striking at 148. However last year, as the new skipper of PBKS, Mayank had a very ordinary time.

Sadly in his 13 appearances, the 32-year-old scored just 196 runs at an average of 16.33. His batting position was never fixed and often juggled for floaters like Jonny Bairstow and Bhanuka Rajapaksa. Consequently, the franchise released him before the 2023 auction. Presently SRH has signed Mayank for INR 8.25 Crore.

However post his PBKS snub, this Karnataka cricketer has again started to stack oodles of runs. In the 2022-23 Ranji season, Mayank emerged as the tournament’s highest run-getter. By averaging 82.50, Agarwal scored 990 runs in his 13 innings. That’s why for Hyderabad, Mayank will look to bat with his enriching batting form.

Overall, the orange army’s explosive batting order will easily allow this cricketer to play his natural game. Maybe in the 2023 season, Mayank might also find SRH as his new IPL home.

Mohammed Siraj

This pacer for RCB hasn’t had a breakthrough IPL season since 2020. In IPL 2021, Siraj was reasonably good scalping 11 wickets at an economy of 6.78. However last year, the 29-year-old had an even more severe downfall. From his 15 appearances, Siraj picked just 9 wickets at a higher economy of 10.8.

Unfortunately, the bowler in IPL 2022 was found erratic both in power plays and at the death overs. Bitterly, Siraj also exhibited his worst IPL economy rate last year. But currently, before joining IPL 2023, the speedster enjoyed substantial white-ball success for India.

In 2023 ODIs so far, Siraj has been amongst the wickets. In his eight 50-over games, the Hyderabad bowler has profusely scalped 19 wickets. Hence certainly for the Bangalore franchise, Siraj’s white-ball bowling form will be a boon. Overall now in the absence of Reece Topley and Josh Hazlewood, Siraj will have to bring his best A game for the red army.

Ravindra Jadeja

Undoubtedly in IPL 2021, Jadeja was the most valuable player for CSK. To help his franchise win the trophy, the all-rounder produced a blockbuster season. From his bat, Jadeja scored 227 runs at an average of 75 and a strike rate of 145. Even with his bowling, the spinner scalped 13 wickets from 16 games. As result, the cricketer also then got signed for INR 16 Crore for IPL 2022.

But agonizingly, Jadeja came nowhere close to his lofty IPL salary. In IPL 2022, southpaw had a very disappointing season. With his bat, Jadeja just produced 166 runs at an average of 19.33 having a strike rate of 118.37. His wickets tally also plummeted to 5 scalps. In between, the abrupt captaincy transfer to MS Dhoni also became an unpleasant experience.

However as of now, the 33-year-old is enjoying and exhibiting his best cricket. After his injury comeback, Jadeja had a successful BGT red-ball series. Even in ODIs against Australia, his 45* run knock was a match-winning cause. Hence this year for CSK, the southpaw will be expected to thrive like the 2021 season.

Vijay Shankar

In the mega auction of IPL 2022, Vijay Shankar was signed for INR 1.4 Crore by the GT. The franchise initially also dwelled this all-rounder in their playing XI. But the cricketer just played 4 matches for Gujarat. Sadly in those appearances, Vijay Shankar didn’t create any major impact. Comprehensively in the IPL, this cricketer is yet to produce his first breakthrough season.

However after IPL 2022, the 32-year-old firstly went for his shoulder surgery. Thankfully after his surgery, Shankar has found his batting form back. Recently in the 2022-23 Ranji season, the batter stacked runs for Tamil Nadu. Shankar smashed three centuries, especially against Maharashtra and Mumbai. Therefore with runs under his belt, Shankar is expected to prosper for GT.

Optimistically, the franchise again had him picked for their opening game against CSK. In response, Shankar decently played a cameo of 27 runs thus helping Gujarat fetch their first win. Overall in IPL 2023, Shankar can be a useful cricketer for GT to defend their title.