The Kochi Tuskers Kerala had joined the Indian Premier League (IPL) in the year 2010-11 along with the Pune Warriors India team. The two franchises made their debuts in the 2011 season. While the Pune-based team managed to play three IPL seasons in its brief existence, the Kochi Tuskers Kerala could only play a solitary season.
The team had made some interesting signings like Brendon McCullum, Mahela Jayawardene, VVS Laxman, Steve Smith, Parthiv Patel, RP Singh, Ravindra Jadeja, Muttiah Muralitharan, Brad Hodge and several others. While the Tuskers did not have a great IPL season, they still gained everyone’s attention by doing well in a few matches.
KTK is the only team against whom Sachin Tendulkar scored an IPL hundred, while KTK bowler Prasanth Parmeswaran had conceded 37 runs in an over against the Royal Challengers Bangalore. Apart from these unique records, there are also a few players who only played for this franchise in their IPL careers. Here’s a look at those players.
1.Michael Klinger
The cricket fans label Michael Klinger as the unluckiest Australian player in the last two decades. The right-handed batsman from Victoria had all the talent to become the next big thing in world cricket.
Unfortunately, he never got proper opportunities. Despite his good performances in the CLT20, none of the IPL franchises signed him except Kochi Tuskers Kerala. In 4 IPL matches for KTK, Klinger scored 73 runs at a strike rate of 94.81.
2.Steve O’ Keefe
Steve O’ Keefe had come into the limelight after he picked up 12 wickets in a Test match against India. The left-arm spinner’s performance helped the Australian team record a massive win by 333 runs.
A few years before his heroics in the white jersey, Steve had earned a contract from the Kochi Tuskers Kerala in the IPL 2011 Auction. However, he could not play a single match and then no other IPL team signed him.
3.Deepak Chougule
Uncapped Indian right-handed batsman Deepak Chougule had shown some potential in the domestic arena. The Kochi Tuskers Kerala spotted him and then signed him for the 2011 season.
As there were some big names present in the Kochi Tuskers Kerala squad, Deepak did not get a chance to play. The 36-year-old played for the Bijapur Bulls in the Karnataka Premier League.
4.Gnaneswara Rao
Brother of former Indian cricketer Venugopal Rao, Gnaneswara Rao had made his IPL debut as a part of the Kochi Tuskers Kerala team in 2011. The batting all-rounder made his IPL debut versus the Rajasthan Royals.
He also played a game against the Chennai Super Kings before his IPL career ended. In the two games that he played, Rao scored 19 runs and bowled one over, giving away seven runs.
It would have been great for the IPL if the Kochi Tuskers Kerala managed to play more seasons. The BCCI are still thinking to add more teams in the coming seasons. Recently, the Deccan Chargers were in the news after they won a case against the board. It will be interesting to see if the IPL 2009 champions could make a comeback to the tournament.
