'Leaving IPL early last year might be the reason' - Kane Richardson after he and Adam Zampa went unsold in mega auction

The mega auction for the 15th edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) took place over the last weekend in Bengaluru. A total of 204 players were sold out of the shortlisted 600 in the auction with all the 10 teams forming their squads for the next three years. However, among unsold, there were certain big names including the Australian pair of Kane Richardson and Adam Zampa.

Both the players were signed by the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) last season. But they didn’t play much and were among the ones who pulled out of the tournament due to the second wave of COVID-19 in India. Kane Richardson opened up about him and Zampa going unsold in the mega auction and felt the duo leaving the IPL early last year could be the reason for them not getting any bid.

Moreover, Richardson was surprised more to see Zampa going unsold despite having a great run in the T20 World Cup last year. “I was definitely more shocked for him. To be brutally honest, when we left last year, in the circumstances early, I remember having a conversation with him. I said to him, look, this may come back and bite us, and at that time it wasn’t a priority for us to be there. We wanted to get back to Australia.

“So I think there’d be some kind of buyers that’d be pretty wary of picking us up thinking that we wouldn’t come again. I definitely think that’s a factor,” the Aussie pacer said according to ESPNCricinfo.

Richardson clears he hasn’t spoken to any franchise

However, Kane Richardson was quick to make it clear that he is only guessing the reason and none of the franchises told to him about this. However, he felt that not being available in IPL 2020 also after getting picked due to the birth of his child had damaged his reputation.

“I’m just speaking on what I think would be a factor in it. I don’t know. I’ve never had a dialogue with a franchise or a person that says that’s what would be the case. But I think I didn’t go the year before as well with the birth of my boy. So my reputation probably is that in the last couple of years I haven’t gone so it’s obviously not something that I am.

“I try and play as much cricket as I can. But I think the circumstances in the last couple of IPLs have made me not go. But it’s not a reputation I want. So that’s just us brainstorming. I think that’d be a point of them being wary of us turning up, but I’m not I’m not 100% sure,” Richardson added.