 "Warner to Williamson: Top 5 cricketers who might have played their last IPL")
Sourav Ganguly said that his Delhi Capitals player, Jake Fraser-McGurk, is going to be a game-changer in the future and all the teams would want him on their side. The reason was his ability to strike from ball one. Similar sentiments were echoed by South Africa and Gujarat Titans player David Miller.
"I suppose as we move forward, it becomes more and more about impact. How impactful are you in the game? Depending on the situation. If we need 15 an over, can you do it? And that's, I think, what guys are going to have to select teams on — their match-winning ability," added the Proteas player.
This focus on strike rate means that those who are lagging will have to pay the price. Here are the top five players who will be playing their last IPL as they lag in the strike rate quotient and do not have age by their side to make a difference later on, to come back and play IPL again.
David Warner
Warner, who moved on from Sunrisers back to his first base in Delhi, has not found the going smooth. He has been replaced at the opening slot more often in 2024 than not. The 37-year-old has already called it quits in the longest format and this year's T20 World Cup would most likely be his last as far as the white-ball format of international cricket is concerned.
His strike rate has gone down over the years in the league and thus if he is not effective at the top in the powerplay, there is no point having him in the team.
Warner's strike rate over the years in IPL
| Series | Mat | Inns | NO | 100s | 50s | 0s | HS | Runs | Avg | S/R |
| 2009 | 7 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 51 | 163 | 23.29 | 123.48 |
| 2010 | 11 | 11 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 107* | 282 | 28.2 | 147.64 |
| 2011 | 13 | 13 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 77 | 324 | 24.92 | 117.39 |
| 2012 | 8 | 8 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 109* | 256 | 36.57 | 164.1 |
| 2013 | 16 | 16 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 77 | 410 | 31.54 | 126.93 |
| 2014 | 14 | 14 | 3 | 0 | 6 | 1 | 90 | 528 | 48 | 140.8 |
| 2015 | 14 | 14 | 1 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 91 | 562 | 43.23 | 156.55 |
| 2016 | 17 | 17 | 3 | 0 | 9 | 1 | 93* | 848 | 60.57 | 151.43 |
| 2017 | 14 | 14 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 126 | 641 | 58.27 | 141.81 |
| 2019 | 12 | 12 | 2 | 1 | 8 | 0 | 100* | 692 | 69.2 | 143.87 |
| 2020 | 16 | 16 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 85* | 548 | 39.14 | 134.64 |
| 2021 | 8 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 57 | 195 | 24.38 | 107.73 |
| 2022 | 12 | 12 | 3 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 92* | 432 | 48 | 150.52 |
| 2023 | 14 | 14 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 2 | 86 | 516 | 36.86 | 131.63 |
| 2024 | 8 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 52 | 168 | 21 | 134.4 |
| Overall (15) | 184 | 184 | 22 | 4 | 62 | 11 | 126 | 6565 | 40.52 | 139.77 |
Kane Williamson
Second on the list of players who might not play any more IPL seasons is Kane Williamson. The Kiwi captain peaked in the 2017 and 2018 seasons when he led the Sunrisers. But after that, he was never able to strike at the same rate of 140-150 and his averages also did not improve. To see him getting a bid in the next mega auction would be highly unlikely in today's world where strike rate is the parameter for judging a talent.
Kane Williamson's IPL numbers
| Series | Mat | Inns | NO | 100s | 50s | 0s | HS | Runs | Avg | S/R |
| 2015 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 26* | 31 | 31 | 114.81 |
| 2016 | 6 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 50 | 124 | 20.67 | 101.64 |
| 2017 | 7 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 89 | 256 | 42.67 | 151.48 |
| 2018 | 17 | 17 | 3 | 0 | 8 | 1 | 84 | 735 | 52.5 | 142.44 |
| 2019 | 9 | 9 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 70* | 156 | 22.29 | 120 |
| 2020 | 12 | 11 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 67 | 317 | 45.29 | 133.76 |
| 2021 | 10 | 10 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 66* | 266 | 44.33 | 113.19 |
| 2022 | 13 | 13 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 57 | 216 | 19.64 | 93.51 |
| 2023 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 2024 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 26 | 27 | 13.5 | 100 |
| Overall (10) | 79 | 77 | 17 | 0 | 18 | 2 | 89 | 2128 | 35.47 | 125.62 |
Shikhar Dhawan
Not playing domestic cricket, is not part of Indian cricket's frame of things as far as international cricket is concerned, and gets injured regularly. Shikhar Dhawan's stars are in the doldrums at the moment and as a result, his form is on the wrong side as well. He has been unable to play the entire season as skipper in the last two seasons. At 38 years of age, it would be hard for Dhawan to find buyers more so because many young Indians want to open the batting.
Shikhar Dhawan's IPL performances over the years
| Series | Mat | Inns | NO | 100s | 50s | 0s | HS | Runs | Avg | S/R |
| 2008 | 14 | 14 | 5 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 68* | 340 | 37.78 | 115.25 |
| 2009 | 5 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 22 | 40 | 10 | 88.89 |
| 2010 | 10 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 56 | 191 | 19.1 | 112.35 |
| 2011 | 14 | 14 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 95* | 400 | 33.33 | 129.03 |
| 2012 | 15 | 15 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 84 | 569 | 40.64 | 129.61 |
| 2013 | 10 | 10 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 73* | 311 | 38.88 | 122.92 |
| 2014 | 14 | 14 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 64* | 377 | 29 | 118.18 |
| 2015 | 14 | 14 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 54 | 353 | 27.15 | 123.43 |
| 2016 | 17 | 17 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 82* | 501 | 38.54 | 116.78 |
| 2017 | 14 | 14 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 77 | 479 | 36.85 | 127.39 |
| 2018 | 16 | 16 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 92* | 497 | 38.23 | 136.91 |
| 2019 | 16 | 16 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 97* | 521 | 34.73 | 135.68 |
| 2020 | 17 | 17 | 3 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 106* | 618 | 44.14 | 144.73 |
| 2021 | 16 | 16 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 92 | 587 | 39.13 | 124.63 |
| 2022 | 14 | 14 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 88* | 460 | 38.33 | 122.67 |
| 2023 | 11 | 11 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 99* | 373 | 41.44 | 142.91 |
| 2024 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 70 | 152 | 30.4 | 125.62 |
| Overall (17) | 222 | 221 | 29 | 2 | 51 | 11 | 106* | 6769 | 35.26 | 127.14 |
Ishant Sharma
Ishant Sharma, in what could potentially be his last IPL game, took three wickets and those were the wickets of KL Rahul, Quinton de Kock, and Deepak Hooda. However, even at just 35 years of age, Ishant has been through so many injuries that it is hard to expect him to play more. He is not the best at death either. So his biggest weapon is early swing. With batters striking the way they have in IPL 2024, they could very well cancel the swing with big hitting and thus render Ishant impactless.
Umesh Yadav
Another player who might be picked at next year's mega IPL auction is Umesh Yadav. In the last five seasons, Umesh has been able to get more than 10 wickets only once. He is not playing all the matches and at 36, he is not the express best he used to be. Though the 'Vidarbha Express' has been able to run through 148 games and pick 144 wickets, but it is almost time for him now as bidders will think twice before going for him. The questions will be what would they get from him?