3 Orange Cap winners who once went unsold in IPL Auction

There is a huge question mark over the start date of IPL 2020 because of the Coronavirus outbreak but the sports ministry of India will give an update about the same on 15th April. Over the years, IPL has produced several match winners. To award the top achievers, BCCI introduced a new concept of Orange Cap and Purple Cap in 2008.

The batsman with the most runs in an IPL season wins the Orange Cap while the bowler with the most wickets wins the Purple Cap. The foreign players have ruled the batting department so far in the IPL history as in nine seasons, a foreign player has taken the award home. The Australian players have won 6 Orange Cap titles while the Indian players have won this award thrice. Surprisingly, there have been instances where the Orange Cap winners went unsold in IPL Auction.

Here are the 3 Orange Cap winners who once found no bidders in the auction:

1. Shaun Marsh

The first Orange Cap winner in IPL history, Shaun Marsh was one of the most consistent batsmen in the tournament. He played for only one franchise in his entire IPL career, Kings XI Punjab. The left-handed batsman featured in 71 matches for the Mohali-based franchise, aggregating 2,477 runs at a fantastic average of 39.95.

Marsh was an uncapped player when he made his IPL debut and the fact that he won the Orange Cap that year shows that he possessed an incredible amount of talent. Unlike many foreign players, Marsh did not struggle in the Indian conditions.

Yet, he finds himself out of the IPL now. He played his IPL match against Rising Pune Supergiant in 2017 and has not returned to the league ever since. The 36-year-old has gone unsold in the last three auctions.

2. Chris Gayle

The story of Chris Gayle’s return to the IPL will go down as the greatest comeback of all time in IPL history. Playing for the Kolkata Knight Riders in IPL 2010, Gayle did not achieve much success with the bat. Hence, when he entered the IPL Auction in 2011, he found no buyers.

Co-incidentally, Royal Challengers Bangalore’s left-arm pacer, Dirk Nannes suffered an injury that year and Gayle’s IPL career got a revival. The left-handed batsman from Jamaica announced his return to the league with a splendid hundred. He later won the Orange Cap award in 2011 and 2012.

Although he tormented the bowlers in the next few seasons, his form took a dip in 2017. Thus, he once again found no bidders in the first round of IPL Auction 2018 until Kings XI Punjab signed him at the last moment. The Universe Boss will play for Kings XI Punjab in IPL 2020.

3. Michael Hussey 

Another left-handed batsman from the Australian team to feature on this list is Mr. Cricket, Michael Hussey. The former Chennai Super Kings player had won the Orange Cap award in IPL 2013 where he led the Super Kings to the finale with 733 runs in 16 matches. Even though he won the Orange Cap in 2013, Chennai Super Kings released him before the next season.

Mumbai Indians grabbed him in the auction next and he played two seasons for the Mumbai-based franchise. As he could score only 77 runs in 4 matches during IPL 2015, Mumbai released him soon.

In the 2016 IPL Auction, Hussey went unsold and he never returned to the tournament as a player. Chennai Super Kings appointed the Australian player as their batting coach in 2018.