IPL: 5 T20 legends who have gone unsold in an auction
The unique auction system of the Indian Premier League (IPL) saw its fair share of criticism when it was introduced in the inaugural season in 2008, with many claiming that cricketers were being treated as commodities. However, it has grown on most cricket fans and is one of the most anticipated events every year.
IPL teams' strategies in the auction are absolutely imperative to their performances on the field, and it usually comes as no surprise when the world's best cricketers are sold for crores of rupees.
Although hefty price tags often put a heap of pressure on players to perform, the biggest buys in the auction deliver more often than not.
Legendary T20 players who have gone unsold in an IPL auction
However, there have been a few legendary T20 cricketers who have gone unsold in the IPL auction, either because they weren't established cricketers then or because they simply didn't fit into the teams' plans at the time.
In this article, we take a look at 5 T20 legends who have gone unsold in an IPL auction.
#5 Shakib Al Hasan (2009, 2010)
Shakib Al Hasan was only 22 years old at the time of the 2009 IPL auction, but had already played 3 years of Test and ODI cricket. Arguably Bangladesh's greatest-ever player, the all-rounder had no buyers in the 2010 IPL auction as well, which was very surprising considering his stature in international cricket at the time.
Shakib was finally picked up by the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in the 2011 IPL auction and went on to represent them for 7 years before joining Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH). The former Bangladesh captain has had a storied T20 international career - 76 matches, 1,567 runs, 92 wickets.
But in the IPL, he hasn't experienced the same success. Shakib hasn't featured regularly for both teams he has been part of, which is in stark contrast to his incredible performances in almost all other T20 franchise leagues in the world.
Despite his stop-start IPL career so far, the 33-year-old can offer a lot to any team he is part of and is an undisputed T20 legend.