From Hardik Pandya to Glenn Maxwell - Five of the biggest flops of IPL 2024

The 17th edition of the IPL concluded on Sunday as the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) marked their dominance over the Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH), lifting their third IPL trophy at the MA Chidambaram Stadium. 

IPL 2024 proved to be an exciting tournament with a lot of players shining for their respective teams. Players like Travis Head, Sunil Narine, Phil Salt, Virat Kohli, Ruturaj Gaikwad, etc. had an extraordinary season with the bat. 

Meanwhile, Young players like Nitish Kumar Reddy, Jake Fraser-McGurk, Ashutosh Sharma, Shashank Singh, etc. proved to be the revelations of the season.

Lastly though, there have been players that had a season to forget. Players who either went through a bad run of form, faced heavy backlash and criticism from fans or media and in some cases both. It has been a tough season for some players and in today’s story, The Sporting News covers the biggest flops of the IPL from the 2024 season. 

Five of the biggest flops of IPL 2024

Hardik Pandya 

Hardik Pandya’s season with the Mumbai Indians (MI) as the new skipper of the team, replacing Rohit Sharma proved to be a disastrous one. Pandya faced heavy backlash from the fans and was booed at stadiums early in the season. The franchise’s decision to replace Rohit did not sit well with the fans.

The reaction from fans as well as criticisms from media eventually started taking its toll on Pandya’s form on the field. MI managed to win just four games out of the fourteen, finishing at the bottom of the points table. Pandya will now be joining the Indian contingent for the upcoming ICC T20 World Cup, and will have a chance to redeem himself with good performances for the nation. He has also been named vice-captain of the team alongside the skipper Rohit Sharma. 

Devdutt Padikkal 

The young Devdutt Padikkal switched his team from the Rajasthan Royals (RR) to the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) ahead of the 2024 IPL season. Although the opening of Quinton de Kock and KL Rahul was more or less fixed, Padikkal had his share of opportunities.

Despite the chances he got, the former RCB player failed to impress. Padikkal went through a horrendous run of form for the whole season, and is in doubt to stay in the lSG team for next season.

Glenn Maxwell

Australian and RCB all-rounder Glenn Maxwell has been often hailed as one of the best T20 players in the world. But despite his reputation as a destructive batsman and handy bowler for the team, it was a disappointing season from his standards. 

Struggling for form, Maxwell eventually asked the coach to drop him and give someone else a chance. Will Jacks  was the one to replace Maxwell in the team and was able to impress in his debut IPL season. Maxwell was picked up back into the team once again since Jacks was called up due to the English team for International duty, but even still Maxwell failed to impress with his performances with either bat or ball.

David Warner

David Warner is one of the most experienced players in the IPL and has also won the Orange Cap thrice as a player. Despite holding such a pedigree with the bat, Warner has failed to live up to the expectations as an opener for the Delhi Capitals (DC). Warner played just 8 games for DC this season, scoring runs at a poor average of 21.00. 

Warner’s poor form proved to be a blessing in disguise for DC though since they were able to replace the veteran Australian with the young Jake Fraser-McGurk, who has been nothing but a revelation for Rishabh Pant’s side this season.

Anrich Nortje 

Anrich Nortje has proved to be the other DC player who has had a forgetful IPL season. The bowler made a comeback from injury but could manage to play just six games for the DC side this season. In his six appearances Nortje was smashed all across the park and has been hit for an economy rate of over 12.