Kochi Tuskers Kerala was one of the two new franchises that joined the Indian Premier League in 2011. After the success of the first three seasons, BCCI decided to add two more teams to the competition and make it a 10-team event. Kochi Tuskers Kerala was one side and the other was Pune Warriors India. Unfortunately, none of the two teams could make it big in their brief existence in the IPL.
The Tuskers played only one season in the IPL, while Pune Warriors stayed for a longer time. Kochi had some big names like Mahela Jayawardene, Sreesanth, Ravindra Jadeja, Vinay Kumar, RP Singh, Ramesh Powar, Parthiv Patel, Thisara Perera, Steve Smith, Brad Hodge, and Kedar Jadhav in their squad. Some of the players managed to gain bids in the next seasons. However, here are the five players who turned up for KTK in IPL and then never returned.
VVS Laxman
Known as one of the finest Test batsmen in Indian cricket history, VVS Laxman was signed by Kochi Tuskers Kerala in the IPL 2011 Auction. Laxman played for Deccan Chargers in the first few seasons before being released by the team.
However, Laxman struggled to make an impact in the T20 league for Kochi. After Kochi Tuskers Kerala’s disbandment, Laxman did not play a single IPL game and is now the mentor of Sunrisers Hyderabad.
Balachandra Akhil
Former Royal Challengers Bangalore all-rounder Balachandra Akhil had performed decently for the Bangalore-based franchise in the IPL. After being released, Akhil found a new home in Kochi Tuskers Kerala.
Kochi did not use his services much as he played only one match against Delhi Daredevils. Akhil returned with figures of 0/21 in that game and scored 13 runs with the bat. That proved to be his last IPL match.
Deepak Chowgle
Deepak Chowgle represented India in the 2002 ICC U-19 World Cup. The top-order batsman did not receive an opportunity in the IPL, until the Kochi Tuskers Kerala signed him in the 2011 auction.
Unlike Balachandra Akhil and VVS Laxman, Chowgle did not play a single match in the Indian Premier League. He played for Bijapur Bulls in the Karnataka Premier League, but never earned another IPL contract.
Michael Klinger
Champions League T20 star Michael Klinger surprisingly never got any interest in IPL Auctions before Kochi Tuskers Kerala signed him for the 2011 season. The Aussie opener aggregated only 73 runs in four games for the Kochi-based franchise.
Klinger had a great record in the T20 format, but just like Chevrolet Warriors star Davey Jacobs did not make it big for Mumbai Indians, he could not play well for Kochi Tuskers Kerala.
Gnaneswara Rao
Gnaneswara Rao captained the Indian U-19 team when the likes of Suresh Raina and Ambati Rayudu were playing at the junior. However, he could not achieve so much success as his teammates at the senior level.
In his only IPL stint with Kochi Tuskers Kerala, Rao scored 19 runs and took two catches in two games. His career derailed after IPL 2011 as he could play another first-class match after November 2011.
