Financial and franchise mistakes:
- Releasing Chris Gayle - I don’t need to explain this. Why KKR released Gayle is still beyond me. A lot of reports said it was because he left halfway through season 1. Whatever bro! RCB got their penny’s worth and then some.
- Buying an out-of-form Yuvi - Yuvi is no doubt a legend of the game, but IPL is a place where all that doesn’t really count. Loads of superstars have been humbled by the format. RCB and DD both bought Yuvi for super-high prices and he did not do much to justify the buys.
- Buying and Releasing Shane Watson - Weird, I know. It is true that Shane Watson was in the twilight of his career and that he had a lacklustre season with RCB, but he was still a catch. But even then , 9 crores rupees was still high. CSK lapped him up the moment they saw him on sale and he had a pretty good season with CSK under Dhoni’s razor-sharp leadership.
- Benching Glenn Maxwell - MI bought him for $1 M and benched him. Enough said.
- Releasing Gautam Gambhir - Arguably the second best captain in the 2011 and 2012 IPL seasons, releasing Gambhir was one of DD’s worst decisions and that is saying a lot. KKR lapped him up and he single-handedly made them a group of world-beaters. The worst part is, he did not even under perform with DD. Edit - Comments have pointed out that it was Gambhir’s decision. I stand corrected.
- Buying Kevin Pietersen in 2009 - Despite the big bucks and a decent form, KP was the biggest disaster in 2009 season. He had a forgettable outing with just 93 runs. His price tag was $1.55M. Damn!
- Buying Ben Stokes for 12.5 Cr -A rare mistake from RR, who are usually quite shrewd in bids. But understandable. Ben was highest paid even previous season with Pune and sure enogh, he was also the MVP. But he failed in 2018. Expensive mistake.
- Jaydev Undakat for RR - In a season where all teams scrambled for local boys, Unadkat hit the jackpot with the highest bid of the year. A shame he couldn’t justify it. Another huge mis-step by RR.
- Releasing AB Devilliers - Another Jaffa by Delhi. ABD was the swashbuckling South African who was making news for his unique batting style. He was an ace fielder and a superb team man. God knows why DD chose to release him. RCB were like ‘Shut up and take my money’ buying him with $1.5 M.