IPL 2024: Country-wise one big player who went unsold in the auction

Josh Hazlewood (Photo Source: IPL/BCCI)

In the 2024 Indian Premier League (IPL) auction, all ten franchises spent more than 230 crore. Mitchell Starc, Pat Cummins, Daryl Mitchell, and Harshal Patel made it to the list of most expensive players for the season. Cummins, who guided Australia to the 2023 World Cup trophy win, pulled off a contract of INR 20.50 crore from the 2016 champions Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) and broke the record of England’s Sam Curran, who was the costliest player in the history of the auctions.

Cummins couldn’t hold the title for an hour as his compatriot and teammate Starc was fetched for an enormous price of INR 24.75 crore by the KKR franchise. The 2021 Purple Cap winner Harshal Patel became the most expensive Indian player in the auction after getting sold to Punjab Kings (PBKS) for INR 11.75 crore.

On one side, some illustrious players broke into record books for fetching massive prices at the business extravaganza while some eminent names couldn’t attract bidders and went unsold. These players are renowned in international cricket and they were expected to get buyers. However, they didn’t fit into the scheme of things of the franchises. Talking more about them, let’s know one extraordinary player from every country who went unsold.

Here is one distinguished name from each nation that failed to attract bidders in the 2024 IPL auction

7. Sri Lanka – Kusal Mendis

Kusal Mendis. (Photo Source: ISHARA S.KODIKARA/AFP via Getty Images)

Sri Lanka’s Kusal Mendis was announced in the first round of the auction with a base amount of INR 50 lakh. He went unsold as all franchises refused to raise their bidding paddles. Mendis’ ordinary T20 International (T20I) numbers might have gone against him. Playing 55 T20Is in Sri Lanka colours, he has scored only 1270 runs at a strike rate of 133.68.

Talking about his recent batting performances, the right-handed batter looked confident with his bat for Bangla Tiger in the 2023-24 Abu Dhabi T10 League. Playing seven games, he racked up 116 runs in seven games at a strike rate of 196.61. However, his impressive numbers couldn’t convince the franchises to invest in him.

6. West Indies – Akeal Hosein

Akeal Hosein (Photo Source: Twitter)

Akeal Hosein was a part of Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) in the 2023 IPL. However, the franchise gave the talented West Indies stalwart a chance in only one game and he failed to be impactful. Before the 2024 auction, Hyderabad released him along with five players that included big names such as Harry Brook and Adil Rashid.

Following SRH’s move, the Caribbean player went under the hammer in the auction. His name was announced with a basic amount of INR 50 lakh in the first round but the franchises showed reluctance in bidding for him. At the end of the event, he went unsold as his name didn’t feature in the accelerated round as well.

Before the auction, the 30-year-old exuded confidence with his performance in the 2023-24 Abu Dhabi T10 League. Serving New York Strikers, he scalped 12 wickets in eight contests at a thrifty economy of 5.61, he ended up as the leading wicket-taker for the team.

5. South Africa – Tabraiz Shamsi

Tabraiz Shamsi. (Photo Source: Twitter)

South Africa’s left-arm spinner Tabraiz Shamsi’s name was also announced in the auction but he also unfortunately failed to attract buyers. Shamsi, who served Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) and Rajasthan Royals (RR) in the past, went under the hammer for a reserved maximum amount of INR 50 lakh.

Shamsi has taken only three wickets in the cash-rich league, at an expensive economy of 9.05. His dismal record in the league could be a major reason for his failure to get fetched at the business event. Discussing his recent performance, the 33-year-old looked ineffective against India in the One-Day International (ODI) and T20I series played at home in December. 

4.  New Zealand – Ish Sodhi

Ish Sodhi (Photo Source: Twitter)

New Zealand’s Ish Sodhi was looking to feature in the IPL after five years and he was one of the players who submitted his name for the 2024 auction. However, his wish didn’t get fulfilled as he went unsold. His base price was only INR 50 lakh and he could’ve been an excellent addition to any side due to his huge experience in T20Is.

Sodhi has appeared in 105 T20Is and has grabbed 126 wickets at a fine economy of 7.95. In India, his T20I record gets bettered as the leg-spinner has claimed 19 wickets in 13 matches at a frugal economy of 7.11. Despite his excellent bowling numbers, the franchises ignored him.

3. England – Adil Rashid

Adil Rashid. (Photo Source: X(Twitter)

England wrist-spinner Adil Rashid was seen in SRH colours in the 2023 IPL. The star England stalwart played only two matches and got two wickets at a fine economy of 8.00. The spinner enlisted his name for the auction in Dubai after getting dropped from SRH’s 2024 team. Rashid’s basic price was INR 2 crore and he became one of the five players who didn’t get sold at the highest base amount. 

The England veteran’s bowling numbers in the 2023 IPL reveal that Sunrisers underutilised him. Before the recently concluded auction, he looked superb with the ball in the T20I series played against the West Indies. Despite his scintillating performance, he became unlucky in the auction.

2. Australia – Josh Hazlewood

Josh Hazlewood. (Photo Source : Twitter)

Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) supporters were shocked to witness Australia speedster Josh Hazlewood’s omission from their team’s 2024 squad. RCB’s newly appointed coach Andy Flower defended RCB’s decision as he said that Hazlewood will be unavailable in the first half of the upcoming IPL season as the Aussie and his spouse are expecting their first child around the tournament. 

After not getting a place in RCB’s squad, Hazlewood’s name went into the 2024 auction at a starting amount of INR 2 crore but failed to fetch any buyers. Despite his amazing record in the cash-rich league, he went unsold and the reason for that might be his absence from the first half of the 2024 IPL season. 

1. India – Karun Nair

Karun Nair in Delhi Daredevils.(Photo Source: Twitter)

Karun Nair became a renowned name in international cricket after his triple-hundred for India against England in Chennai. He was expected to become a huge player in international cricket and IPL due to his brilliant skills. Currently, the right-handed batter isn’t a notable player in IPL but he looked decent in the league until 2018. In 2023, he was seen in LSG’s camp but didn’t get a place in the playing XI for once.

The 32-year-old’s name was featured in the 2024 IPL auction as Lucknow parted ways with him a few days before the business event. Nair didn’t get a bidder in the auction and found himself on the list of unsold players. Nair looked decent with his bat for Vidarbha in the 2023-24 Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy (SMAT), scoring 218 runs in seven innings at a strike rate of 152.44. However, his performance wasn’t enough to get a buyer in the auction in Dubai.