IPL 2023: Country-wise one big name that went unsold at mini auction

This December, the Indian Premier League fans saw how some players bagged big bucks at the mini-auction 2023. Players such as Sam Curran, Cameron Green, Ben Stokes, Nicholas Pooran, Mayank Agarwal, and Harry Brook got roped in by their respective franchises at handsome amounts and had a great time at the auction. Another side, some names such as Amit Mishra and Piyush Chawla were lucky at the event as they got buyers at their base price despite missing the last edition of the tournament. Among foreign cricketers, English players dominated the auction as their eight cricketers were sold, which is the highest country-wise. Five West Indian cricketers also left an impact at the event and got buyers. Four players from Australia and South Africa respectively also got picked by certain franchises. On the other hand, some eminent names from a lot of countries failed to attract bidders at the auction despite their reputation in international cricket. Here are some of the big names from several countries that failed to attract buyers at the auction: 9. Mujeeb Ur Rahman (Afghanistan) Mujeeb Ur Rahman is one of the star spinners going around in the T20Is these days due to his bowling variations. For Afghanistan, he has won a lot of games with his incredible bowling potential. Picking up 49 wickets in 36 games, at an economy of 6.22, the bowler has done an excellent job for his national team. At the recently concluded mini-auction, the 21-year-old went unsold as no franchise showed interest in him. The youngster had registered his name at a base price of INR 1 crore. Earlier, this year, at the mega auction too, he failed to find any franchise to mark his presence in the 15th installment of the tournament. In the cash-rich league, he has appeared in four seasons and taken 19 wickets in 19 games, at an economy rate of 8.18. Making his IPL debut in 2018 for Kings XI Punjab (now Punjab Kings) (PBKS), the Afghan spinner looked awesome with 14 wickets in 11 matches, at an impressive economy of 6.99. However, his form dipped after the first edition as he couldn’t deliver solid bowling figures for his franchise Punjab Kings (PBKS) and Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) in 2019-20 and 2021 respectively. 8. Johnson Charles (West Indies) The West Indies opening batter Johnson Charles didn’t get any buyers at the 2023 IPL auction. The right-handed batter was looking forward to making his debut in the league next year. But his plans got shattered as he went unsold at the event held in Kochi. Earlier, in the 2016, 2017, and 2018 editions of the auction too, he got ignored by the franchises. The Windies player has plenty of experience of T20 cricket as he has been a part of competitive T20 tournaments such as the Caribbean Premier League (CPL), Pakistan Super League (PSL), and Bangladesh Premier League (BPL). However, the same didn’t entice the IPL franchises to bid for the 33-year-old opening batter at the auction. This year, he got a chance in the West Indies T20 World Cup team but with only 69 runs in two matches at an underwhelming strike rate of 127.77, he looked out of rhythm with his bat. 7. Kusal Mendis Kusal Mendis played a vital role in Sri Lanka’s Asia Cup victory this year. Scoring 155 runs in six games, of the tournament, he contributed to his side in achieving the trophy for the sixth time. In the T20 World Cup 2022 too, he finished as the leading run-scorer for his team with 223 runs in eight matches, at a strike rate of 142.94. In the do-or-die game against Bangladesh in the Asia Cup 2022, his swift knock of 60 runs off 37 deliveries helped the team to qualify for the Super 4 stage. While against the favourites India too, he played a solid knock of 57-run innings off 37 balls to help his team cross the line. The Sri Lanka opener also took part in the 2023 auction, at his base price of INR 50 lakh. Based on his recent outings for his national team, he was expected to get a buyer. However, his fine T20I batting figures in a couple of big tournaments this year couldn’t convince the franchises to invest in him. 6. Taskin Ahmed (Bangladesh) Taskin Ahmed was in amazing touch this year as he picked up eight wickets in five matches of the T20 World Cup 2022, at an economy of 7.27. In the Asia Cup too, the bowler looked good with two scalps in a couple of games, at a low economy of 6.57. The 27-year-old has been impressive in T20Is dismissing 36 batters in 46 matches, at a reasonably decent economy of 7.79. For the marquee event in Kochi, the Bangladesh bowler also listed his name last month, at a base price of INR 50 lakh. However, when his name was announced at the event, no franchise showed interest in him. At the end of the day, he faced disappointment by going unsold. In the last edition of the tournament, Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) wanted his services in the absence of Mark Wood, who was ruled out of the tournament due to an elbow injury. But the youngster couldn’t participate in the tournament as the Bangladesh Cricket Board refused to issue him NOC due to the then South Africa series. 5. Varun Aaron (India) At the 2023 mini-auction, Varun Aaron had to endure the disappointment of not getting a buyer despite his vast experience. The veteran has been playing first-class cricket for more than 14 years. At the mega auction held in February this year, he was picked up by Gujarat Titans at his basic price of INR 50 lakh. Playing two games for the new franchise, he couldn’t perform up to the expectations. Noting his dismal show with the ball, Titans parted ways with him in November. In the IPL, he has played for Kolkata Knight Riders, (KKR), Delhi Capitals (DC), Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB), Punjab Kings (PBKS), and Rajasthan Royals (RR) too. But the 33-year-old bowler never delivered anything influential to the franchises he played for. Talking about his overall performance in the tournament, the veteran has scalped only 44 wickets in 52 games, at an expensive economy of 8.94. From 2011-2015 he was seen in Indian colours, but there too, the bowler couldn’t create much impact. 4. Jimmy Neesham At the 2022 mega auction, Jimmy Neesham was purchased by Rajasthan Royals for INR 1.5 crore. In return, the New Zealand all-rounder delivered an ordinary show in the two games that he played scoring only 31 runs. With the ball too, he went wicketless and splurged runs at an economy of 9.66. Witnessing his terrible displays, the franchise didn’t include his name on its retention list in November. To get a new franchise, he also submitted his name for the auction. Going through his string of ordinary performances in the tournament, no franchise considered him trustworthy for the next season. At the event, his basic price was INR 2 crore. In the league, the 32-year-old has played for four franchises Delhi Capitals (DC), Punjab Kings (PBKS), Mumbai Indians (MI), and Rajasthan Royals (RR). Having racked up only 92 runs and eight wickets in 14 contests of the league, he participated as an unreliable all-rounder at the mini-auction. 3. Travis Head The Australia cricketer Travis Head was looking to make a comeback in the IPL after six years in 2023. He also signed up to be a part of the mini-auction with his base price of INR 2 crore. But the franchises didn’t see the Aussie as a reliable figure to include him in their scheme of things. The 29-year-old Aussie couldn’t do wonders with his bat during his previous stints in the IPL. Appearing in ten league games in 2016 and 2017, he delivered disheartening batting displays notching up only 205 runs. For his national side Australia too, the batter hasn’t been spectacular amassing only 345 runs in 17 T20I matches, at a strike rate of 133.20. In the Big Bash League, he has been a credible face for Adelaide Strikers since the 2012/13 season and has delivered some match-winning knocks. But it couldn’t help him to win the confidence of the franchises at the mini-auction. 2. Tabraiz Shamsi Tabraiz Shamsi has been a tremendous bowler for South Africa in the last few years. The 32-year-old has been a magnificent T20I performer for his national team with 73 scalps in 59 matches at a remarkable economy rate of 7.14. This year, he played a couple of matches in the T20 World Cup 2022 and showcased his bowling skills bagging four wickets at an impressive economy of 7.00. The dashing spinner was expecting to return to the IPL after missing the last season. He took part in the mini-auction by registering his name at a base price of INR 1 crore. Despite his reputation and recent fine figures, he failed to convince the franchise to bid for him. At the auction, the franchises might have taken his unimpressive bowling record for Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) and Rajasthan Royals (RR) into consideration and decided not to invest in him for the upcoming season. In five games of the tournament, he has only bagged three scalps and that too at a rate of 9.05. 1. Dawid Malan Dawid Malan is known for being an impressive T20 top-order batter. For England, the swashbuckling left-hander has notched up 1,748 runs in 55 T20Is, at a strike rate of 135.71. Trusting his batting ability, the English team gave him a chance to solidify the batting line-up in T20 World Cup 2021 and 2022. After going unsold at the mega auction in February, the 35-year-old submitted his name for the mini-auction 2023 at a base price of INR 1.5 crore. But unlike his national teammates Ben Stokes, Sam Curran, Harry Brook, and Phil Salt, he didn’t succeed in grabbing the attention of the franchises. Malan will look to continue performing at the international level and bag another opportunity to have a stint in the forthcoming editions of the Indian Premier League.

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IPL 2023: Country-wise one big name that went unsold at mini auction

Here we bring to you country-wise one big name that went unsold at the IPL mini auction 2023.

1. Dawid Malan

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