IPL: 3 Uncapped players who got big bucks at the auction

The 2021 IPL auction had many surprises for us and some head-turners. We saw teams spending big bucks on many players, even though it was a mini-auction. Some players were bought for quite a reasonable amount of money, whereas some had very massive deals. 

Now, let us take a look at the three uncapped players who got big bucks at the 2021 IPL auction:

1. Krishnappa Gowtham

Krishnappa Gowtham became the most expensive uncapped player of the 2021 IPL auction. Chennai Super Kings went all in for him, as they were looking for an all-rounder of his capabilities. MS Dhoni also loves having players like Gowtham, who can play a big role in his team. He was bought by CSK for a whopping 9.25 crores, even though he is 32 currently. We will have to wait and see if he can become a boon to the MS Dhoni-led side. 

2. Riley Meredith

Another uncapped player is Riley Meredith. His ferocious pace and performance in the Big Bash League helped him in the IPL auction. He has played 35 T20 league matches and has taken 45 wickets with an economy of eight. He was picked up by the Punjab Kings for eight crores, which shows how desperate the teams are for a fast bowler. Meredith did not even play a single international game before the auction, but still ended up getting big bucks. Let us hope that this young pacer can perform up to his price tag.

3. Shahrukh Khan

This 25-year-old played an integral part for Tamil Nadu in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2021. He is an all-rounder, who bowls right-arm-off-break and can also clear the ropes with ease. Shahrukh Khan had the best batting strike-rate of 220 in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy this year. At the IPL auction, Punjab Kings did not back out from buying him and they went on bidding until their winning bid of 5.25 crores. Shahrukh Khan will be hoping to make it into the starting eleven so that he can showcase some of his talents.

IPL: 3 Famous players who went unsold at the auction

In the 2021 IPL auction, we all saw many unexpected picks and some exciting players getting left out. The franchises were looking to build a title-winning team and had spent more than 145 crores on the 18th of February. Lucky are those who were able to make it to some team's squad, whereas the unfortunate ones are the players who performed well but did not make the cut.

Now, let us take a look at three famous players who went unsold at the 2021 IPL auction:

1. Alex Hales

Here, Alex Hales comes first on the list. No one expected him to go unsold after his magnificent batting throughout the Big Bash League this year. He had topped in the run charts making 543 runs with a solid strike rate of 161.60. Hales is also quite experienced in the shortest format, playing around 60 matches for England and scoring 1600 plus runs. We will have to wait and see if the IPL teams regret not picking an aggressive opener like him, that too for only his base price of 1.5 crores.

2. Jason Roy

Jason Roy is one of the cleanest strikers of the limited-overs game. It surprised many to see him go unsold in the 2021 IPL auction. He is someone who can give his team a quick-fire start and take them to big totals. Jason Roy has a strike rate of 144 in T20I's for England and has scored a total of 890 runs in his 38 matches. He has played eight IPL matches with a strike rate of nearly 135 and his top score being 91 not out. Roy is quite a destructive player and any team would have benefitted to have him at the top of the order.

3. Glenn Phillips

This 24-year-old has been playing some good cricket for his country and recently he became the fastest player to score a century by a New Zealand cricketer in the shortest format. Despite being a wicket-keeper batsman, who is in good form and having a low price tag of just 50 lakhs at the auction, no teams were ready to bid for him. Glenn Phillips will be hoping to make a lot more impact for New Zealand and also to attract the attention of the IPL teams ahead of next year's mega auction.

IPL: 3 Most unexpected buys at the auction

In the IPL 2021 player auction which took place in Chennai, we were able to see several shocking moves. All the teams strengthened their squads by one way or the other. Sadly, many famous players had missed out from being selected and some even had a bidding war. We also saw some surprising picks during the IPL auction. 

Now, let us take a look at the three most unexpected buys at the 2021 IPL auction:

1. Cheteshwar Pujara

Cheteshwar Pujara has not played IPL for the past six years and it surprised many when he got picked up by Chennai Super Kings. He was bought by CSK for his base price of 50 Lakhs since no other team bid for him. Pujara is known to be one of the best in red-ball cricket and his recent test performances have been brilliant. Pujara was picked up by CSK more out of respect and he is unlikely to get into the playing eleven. 

2. Kedhar Jadhav

Another surprising name to be picked was Kedhar Jadhav. He has not done much in his recent IPL years and has disappointed many. Last year, he played eight matches for Chennai Super Kings and ended up with just 62 runs. In the 2019 season, he averaged only 18 with very below-par performances. Overall, in his three-year stint with CSK, he was only able to score a mere 248 runs. This poor run of form made CSK release him, but luckily Sunrisers Hyderabad bought him for his base price of two crores at the auction.

3. Marco Jansen

Last on the list is Marco Jansen, a new name to many. This 20-year-old is from South Africa and was roped in by the Mumbai Indians for only 20 Lakhs. Many established players were unlucky to miss out this year without getting any bids, but this young pacer made the cut. It is said that Mumbai Indians has been keeping an eye on this youngster for a while now and he seems to have impressed many in their camp. MI is known to be one of the best scouting teams in the IPL and maybe Marco Jansen is one of those special players.

IPL: 3 Best steals at the auction

The 2021 IPL auction was a thrilling experience for all. A total of 57 players were sold on the auction day at Chennai, which includes 22 foreign players. We saw some players getting sold at costly prices, but meanwhile, they were a few star players who were bought for a very reasonable amount of money. Such buys are always a steal for the franchises. 

Now, let us take a look at the three best steals in the 2021 IPL auction:

1. Dawid Malan

One of the biggest surprises in the IPL 2021 auction was Dawid Malan. It was expected to be a bidding war when his name came up in the auction. Surprisingly though, only Punjab Kings bid for Dawid Malan and he was sold for his base price of just 1.5 crores. He has shown us his batting masterclass on many occasions. He averages 53.4 in T20's with a hefty strike rate of 149.5, which is quite remarkable especially in such a competitive format. Nevertheless, David Malan will be happy to join Punjab Kings and he will be hoping to make an impact in his first-ever IPL season.

2. Steve Smith

Next on the list is Steve Smith, the ex-captain of Rajasthan Royals. RR released him after their poor 2020 season reaching last on the table. They have appointed the 26-year-old Sanju Samson from Kerala as the successor to lead RR this year. Smith was sold to Delhi Capitals for 2.2 crores, just above his base price which amazed many. We saw a big change in his price tag, from 12.5 crores for RR to 2.2 crores for DC in just a year. He is a very consistent performer and has shown his worth every season. Steve Smith has scored 300 plus runs in his last three IPL seasons and has the capability to hold together any batting team. Moreover, his captaincy skills and experience will come in handy for the young Delhi Capitals captain Shreyas Iyer. DD will surely be happy to have Steve Smith in their squad, especially for such a low price.

3. Shakib Al Hasan

Shakib Al Hasan was bought back by KKR for a steal of 3.2 crores. During the IPL auction, we saw all the big bids going for the fast bowlers and the all-rounders. Sadly, Shakib did not seem to be one among them, even though he is a very consistent performer and is one of the best all-rounders in the game. He was even the ICC's number one all-rounder in all three formats of the game in 2015. Shakib Al Hasan has played 76 T20 matches and has scored more than 1500 runs. Along with this, he has taken 92 wickets under an economy of seven and with his best figures of 5 for 20. Kolkata Knight Riders will be delighted to have a player like Shakib, who can bat anywhere in their line-up and bowl in any given situation. 

IPL: 5 Most expensive players in the auction history

The Indian Premier League auction has always been a big event and has attracted the attention of millions of people around the globe. We have seen yet another IPL auction this year, even during such a pandemic situation. IPL is famously known for the fanbase of the tournament and the amount of money that is spent on the league. The teams spend big bucks on some great names at the auction table and this is the reason for it being one of the best leagues in the world with a hefty amount of sponsors. Even this year we saw some huge buys at the auction and some record-breaking contracts. 

Now, let us take a look at the five most expensive players in the IPL auction history:

1. Chris Morris 

The South African all-rounder was recently sold to Rajasthan Royals for a whopping 16.25 crores. Chris Morris became the most expensive player in the 2021 IPL auction. He also took over Yuvraj Singh's 2015 auction price to become the most expensive player in the IPL auction history. In the IPL, Morris has a heavy strike rate of 157.9 with the bat and with the ball he has taken 80 wickets under an economy of only eight. These are some excellent numbers for an all-rounder and all eyes will be on Morris this season, to see if he justifies his price tag or not.

2. Yuvraj Singh 

Yuvraj Singh comes second on the list with 16 crores to his name. Delhi Daredevils went all out for the Indian all-rounder in the 2015 IPL auction. He was expected to play a big part in their batting core but did not end up doing so. Yuvraj was only able to score 248 runs in the whole tournament and Yuvraj's every run cost DD nearly 6.5 lakh. 

3. Pat Cummins

The Australian pacer was the hottest buy in IPL 2020 auction. Even though many franchises went after him, Kolkata Knight Riders were the team to acquire his services for 15.5 crores. Pat Cummins leads the Australian pace attack and did the same for KKR. He picked up 12 wickets in his 14 matches with an economy of under eight and also scored 146 runs. Even though he did not perform up to everyone's expectations, he still showcased a glimpse of his pace in the IPL.

4. Kyle Jamieson

Kyle Jamieson, a new name to many, but ended being one of the biggest buys in the 2021 IPL auction. He made a massive amount of 15 crores in his debut IPL season. Kyle Jamieson was picked up by the Royal Challengers Bangalore to bolster their pace attack and he will surely be their strike bowler.  Jamieson has bowled exceptionally for New Zealand in the longest format but when it comes to T20, he has some poor numbers to his name. The 6 ft 8-inch pacer can surely bowl some steaming deliveries and RCB will hope to win their first-ever title with his help.

5. Ben Stokes

We all know how important an all-rounder is to a team. In the 2017 IPL auction, Ben Stokes was the biggest buy for his all-round capabilities. The no more Rising Pune Super Giants had bought him for a wealthy amount of 14.5 crores. Ben Stokes made a remarkable run in his debut season, scoring more than 300 runs along with a century to his name. His bowling abilities also did not disappoint, getting 12 wickets with an economy of just 7.18. He was worth every penny for RPSG, as he helped them reach the IPL final. His debut season still remains to be his best ever in the IPL.