It has been 12 years when Rajasthan Royals, with a bunch of unknown youngsters led by the inspiring Shane Warne, lifted the IPL 2008 trophy. From that winning XI, only a few of them are still playing IPL, while few of them have bid adieu to the game. Cricwizz takes a look where are the winning XI currently, and what they are up to now.
1) Niraj Patel
He opened the batting for Royals in the final, but could manage just 2 runs before he was clean bowled by Manpreet Gony. He is best remembered for scoring 29-ball 40 against Mumbai Indians in the penultimate league game. He played another season for Royals in 2009. Overall, he managed 121 runs in 9 games in IPL for Royals. He has bid adieu to the game now, having played his last First Class match in 2015.
2) Swapnil Asnodkar
He opened the batting for Royals and scored 28 runs in the final. He played 3 more seasons for Royals, scoring 423 runs @ 21.15 with 2 fifties. He last played competitive cricket in 2018 in a List A match against Gujarat for Goa, and has faded away since.
3) Kamran Akmal
The Pakistan player kept wickets for Royals in 2008 IPL, and batted at No 3 in the final, scoring 6 runs. That was the first and last IPL he played as Pakistan players were not allowed to play again due to tension between the two countries. Akmal has lost favour with his national team, thanks to his atrocious keeping and inconsistent batting. He last played for Pakistan in 2017. Currently, he plays for Peshawar Zalmi in Pakistan Super League.
4) Shane Watson
Watson scored 28 crucial runs at No 4 in the final to resurrect the innings and put a 65-run match-winning stand with Yusuf Pathan. He has now retired and plays in domestic T20 leagues. He won the 2018 IPL title for Chennai Super Kings, scoring a ton against SRH in the final. He is playing for CSK again in IPL 2020.
5) Yusuf Pathan
Pathan was the architect of the win in the final, scoring 39-ball 56 with 3 fours and 4 sixes. He was named man of the match. He went on to play for KKR, and won two IPL titles for them, and also played for SRH from 2018 to 2019. He went unsold in IPL 2020. He continues to ply his trade in first-class cricket.
6) Mohammed Kaif
The 2020 NatWest final hero managed just 12 runs in the final. He played 2 seasons for RR, before playing for KXIP, and RCB. He is one of the biggest flops in IPL history, managing just 259 runs @ 14.38 with a highest score of 34 not out in 29 games in 4 seasons. He retired from all forms of cricket in 2018. He now appears as a commentator now.
7) Ravindra Jadeja
He fell for a golden duck in the final. He was still a teenager then trying to find his foothold in the cricketing world. He now plays for CSK, since being part of the squad since 2012 IPL. He was part of the XI that won CSK the 2018 IPL trophy. He is also a key member of Indian national team now.
8) Shane Warne
Warne inspired his young bunch of players to win the first trophy. He saw Royals home in the company of Sohail Tanvir, scoring 9 unbeaten runs. Warne played 4 seasons for Royals, taking 57 wickets in 55 games. He has now retired from all forms of cricket, but makes sure, he remains in the news.
9) Sohail Tanvir
The tall Pakistan pacer scored the winning runs and also took 1 wicket in the final. He was the highest wicket-taker in the tournament with 22 wickets. He has lost favour with the national team, but continues to play CPL and Pakistan Super League.
10) Siddharth Trivedi
He conceded 21 runs in 2 overs in the final. His claim to fame was in the match against Mumbai Indians in a league match, when he dismissed Sachin Tendulkar and Sanath Jayasuriya. He last played a competitive game in 2015, having bid adieu to the game of cricket.
11) Munaf Patel
Munaf got 2 overs where he conceded 14 runs in the final. He also played for Mumbai Indians and Gujarat Lions later. He was part of Mumbai Indians winning IPL squad in 2013. He retired from cricket in 2018.
Photo courtesy: Zeenews
