Indian Premier League started in 2008 and since then, many nations have followed suit to have a league of their own. However, not many have come close to IPL in terms of popularity and quality. That said, there are a few players who did well despite not playing a lot of IPL cricket. On that note, here, we take a look at four batters who hardly played in the IPL but still scored more than 10000 T20 runs.
1) James Vince – 0 Matches
It is actually a surprise that a player of James Vince’s quality has not played in the IPL. Let alone IPL, he has not even played a lot for his country in this format. However, when it comes to his performances in other leagues, he has been brilliant and his record of scoring over 10K T20 runs is solid proof.
Vince has played a lot in the BBL, BPL and the PSL. Of course, in England, in the T20 competition, he is a popular name. It is only now in the IPL that English players are popular. When the tournament started, it was more about the Aussies. Hence, Vince never got a chance to play in the IPL.
2) Alex Hales – 6 Matches
Alex Hales is one of the batters who hardly played in the IPL but still scored more than 10000 T20 runs. The English opener is a freelance cricketer now. He recently retired from international cricket. In fact, due to a controversy, he did not play for England for a long time. However, he was crucial in the team’s success at the 2022 T20 World Cup.
Hales played for SRH and was a part of the KKR squad. However, he pulled out of the competition many times. Hence, he never gave the confidence for teams to have him in the squad. That said, he still has a chance to play in the tournament.
3) Shoaib Malik – 7 Matches
After the first campaign, Pakistan players were not allowed in the IPL. Hence, the likes of Shoaib Malik had to depend on T20 leagues of other nations.
Malik is one of the oldest active cricketers. He has played in almost every T20 league across the globe. Especially in Pakistan and Bangladesh, his longevity has been brilliant. Hence, it is not a surprise that he finds himself on this elusive list.
4) Colin Munro – 12 Matches
Colin Munro is also one of the batters who hardly played in the IPL but still scored more than 10000 T20 runs. When he started out for New Zealand, he got some centuries and within a short time, he became a popular name in the T20 format. Hence, naturally, it was not a surprise that he got a chance in the IPL. However, he could not get a lot of chances in the competition.
On the other hand, Munro is still doing well in various T20 leagues. He started out as an opener but he can now play in the middle order. In addition, he bowls medium pace and can keep wickets, as well. He is also the skipper of a few teams right now.
