Mumbai Indians are arguably the most successful IPL team ever with five trophies to their name. They have been truly formidable in all facets of the game, especially since their maiden title win in 2013.
There have been many sensational players who have graced the IPL stage while playing for the Mumbai Indians for a long time. There is a reason why these players have been so loyal to this franchise and that is because Mumbai Indians trusted them even when they were not at their best.
Players like Kieron Pollard, Lasith Malinga, Jasprit Bumrah have served the defending champions for a long time. However, there have been some players who have played just a solitary IPL game for the Mumbai Indians. Here are four such players:
1. Yuzvendra Chahal
It will come to the surprise of many that Yuzvendra Chahal was a part of the Mumbai Indians team for three years. Although he was there with MI for such a long time and played a crucial role for them in winning the 2011 Champions League, he got to play only a solitary game in the IPL 2013 season.
It was but natural that Chahal had not moulded himself into the world-class bowler that he is now and with stalwarts like Harbhajan Singh and Pragyan Ojha in their ranks, Mumbai Indians was not the place where he was going to get enough game time.
He has been an important part of the RCB squad under Virat Kohli and has gone on to play white-ball cricket for India. He still remains one of the best leg-spinners in the country, thanks to his development under Kohli.
2. Stuart Binny
Stuart Binny, son of former Indian fast bowler Roger Binny, did enjoy a brief period with the Indian team as he was one of the very few seaming all-rounders in the country.
He has featured for a number of games in the IPL for RCB as well as RR. However, he has also featured for the Mumbai Indians where he played just a solitary game in the IPL 2010 season. Binny scored only 8 runs and gave away nine in his solitary over.
He has continued to play domestic cricket but now is nowhere near national reckoning. He will always remain as someone who had the potential to do well but wasn’t quite able to do justice to it.
3. Andre Nel
Andre Nel was a South African fast bowler and was known for his aggressive mentality and unorthodox bowling action. He was snapped up by Mumbai Indians in the inaugural season of the IPL in 2008.
However, he played just a single game where he gave away 31 runs in just three overs against the Delhi Daredevils. His impact was so less that he wasn’t picked in the playing XI again for the Mumbai Indians.
4. Jacob Oram
Jacob Oram had a reputation of being a big-hitter for the Kiwis and was also handy with the ball. Thus, when he was bought by the Mumbai Indians, he was seen as a great asset. He had also featured for the Chennai Super Kings.
However, for Mumbai Indians in 2013, Oram just played a solitary game. He did not get an opportunity to bat and also went without any wickets. Thus, he wasn’t able to make justice to his reputation while playing for the Mumbai Indians.
However, this doesn’t take away anything from the fact that he was a great player for New Zealand and a genuine match-winner.
