Kochi Tuskers Kerala’s last IPL playing XI – Where are they now?
The Indian Premier League’s immense popularity from 2008 to 2010, opened the window to the organisers of IPL, to incorporate a couple of more teams. And so, they did. Two new teams, Kochi Tuskers Kerala( KTK) and Pune Warriors India were introduced in 2011. Both the teams roped in a number of stars, but failed to put in a good show, finishing 9th and 8th on the points table respectively. While Pune went on to be a part of IPL for a couple of more seasons, Kochi was terminated after this season itself due to some issues in monetary transactions.
Here we look at the 11 players who were a part of the franchise’s last IPL appearance against CSK in 2011 and where they are now.
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Parthiv Patel
The diminutive wicket-keeper batsman, Parthiv Patel played all 14 games for Kochi, scoring 202 runs, and was even their skipper for the last game against Chennai Super Kings. After playing for KTK, Parthiv went on to play for a number of franchises including Deccan Chargers, Sunrisers Hyderabad and Mumbai Indians. After a brief stint a few years back, Parthiv returned to RCB in 2018 and has been a part of their squad ever since.
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Brendon McCullum
The man who started it all with his 158* in the first game of the IPL in 2008, Brendon McCullum was bought by KTK for 2.18 crores in the 2011 Auction. McCullum emerged as their highest run-getter as he accumulated 357 runs which included a high score of 81. He went on to play for a couple of more franchises later on too before going unsold in the 2019 auction. Currently, he is the head coach of Kolkata Knight Riders, a team he began his journey with.
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Yalaka Gnaneswara Rao
Yalaka Gnaneswara Rao played just two matches for KTK, their last match being one of them. He ended up scoring just 19 runs in those 2 games. At one point, Rao was the captain of the U-19 team which had the likes of Suresh Raina and Irfan Pathan. After that season, Rao never got an IPL contract and his last game for his state, Andhra Pradesh, also came way back in 2013. Not much is known about his current whereabouts.
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Brad Hodge
A T20 specialist, Brad Hodge was a man who kept KTK together in the 2011 season. He scored 285 runs in 14 games while also picking 7 wickets. After a relatively successful season, Hodge was picked up by RR and played his last IPL game for them in 2014. He went on to become the head coach of Gujarat Lions in 2016 and 2017 and then Kings XI Punjab in 2018. Currently, he isn’t involved in the IPL in any capacity and is coaching the Victoria Cricket team in Australia.
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Ravindra Jadeja
Another player who put in consistent performances for Kochi was Ravindra Jadeja. After being bought for around 4.37 crores, he proved his value by scoring 283 runs and picking up 8 wickets as well. In the 2012 auction, he was bought by CSK at a mammoth price of more than two million dollars and has been an integral part of their squad since then.
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Owais Shah
Owais Shah, the England middle-order batsman, got very limited opportunities for Kochi. Playing 3 games, he got to bat in just 2 innings and could aggregate only 26 runs. He moved to Rajasthan where he found decent success in 2012, but again played just 2 games in 2013 and played his last game against KKR. Shah is happily retired from the sport for almost half a decade now.
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Kedar Jadhav
Kedar Jadhav, was one of the uncapped picks of Kochi in 2011. However, he had a miserable season, managing just 18 runs in 6 innings. Since then, he has gone on to play for the likes of Delhi and RCB and currently is a part of CSK’s middle order, a team he has been with since 2018.
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R Vinay Kumar
Vinay Kumar, after an excellent domestic season, was picked up by KTK in the 2011 auction. However, he could not replicate his form in the IPL as in 13 appearances he could grab only 4 scalps. He went on to play for a number of high-profile franchises like RCB, MI and played his last game in 2018 for KKR, before going unsold in the 2019 auction. He has recently moved to Puducherry as a player-mentor and will look to do well there.
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RP Singh
R.P Singh was the spearhead of Kochi’s bowling attack and ended up picking 13 wickets for them in 14 appearances. 2009’s Purple Cap holder, like Kumar, R.P went on to play for the likes of RCB and MI. The last time he played IPL was in 2016 for Rising Pune Supergiant. Currently, he is a commentator in Star Sports’ Hindi panel.
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S Sreesanth
Sreesanth couldn’t live up to the hype of being a World Cup winner in 2011, as he was able to pick just 7 wickets for them in 9 games. He moved to Rajasthan the next year but his career came crashing down as he was accused of spot fixing, and was handed a 7-year ban from cricket. In the time away from cricket, Sreesanth acted in movies and participated in reality shows. With his ban coming to an end recently, Sreesanth is looking to do well for his state team, Kerala.
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Muttiah Muralitharan
The all-time legendary Muttiah Muralitharan, after a heartbreaking loss in the 2011 World Cup finals, represented KTK in the 2011 IPL. However, Murali was severely out of form and picked up just 2 wickets in 19 overs he bowled across 5 games. He was with RCB the next 3 seasons and that’s where he completed his IPL career. Currently, he is the bowling coach of Sunrisers Hyderabad.
