The Indian Premier League has taken the cricketing world by storm and it may not be long before players from across the globe give preference to T20 leagues over international matches for their country.
The world has already seen cricketers going freelance, with Andrew Flintoff, the first among them. The IPL started with a huge uproar in 2008 and has gone on to become the most endeared cricket league in the world.
Apart from the huge money involved, the sheer experience of rubbing shoulders with the legends of the game have seen thousands of domestic cricketers from across the globe flock to these leagues.
The IPL auctions have invited large anticipation over the years to see which players go to which franchises and for what amount. But a good number of players have had the misfortune of being unsold in the auctions despite boasting great numbers for their country or club.
A glance through the 9 seasons of this mega event shows a number of talented, experienced stars missing out in the auctions. Let us take a look at some of them:
#1 Shakib Al-Hasan (2009, 2010)
A talented cricketer from Bangladesh, this left-handed all-rounder was given the raw deal in the auctions in 2009 and 2010. He was ranked first in the ODI all-rounders list in 2009, but none of the eight teams could find a way to fit in this superstar.
Team-mate, Mashrafe Mortaza at the time commented, "I would have been a lot happier if Shakib had got a team because he truly deserved it for his sensational form with the bat and ball". Mortaza was right.
His numbers in T20 suggested that he deserved to be picked by a team. Shakib averages 24 with the bat with 6 half-centuries and a top score of 84 in T20I, besides taking 65 wickets in 54 matches.
The franchises seemed to have studied more about him after 2010 and he was picked up by Kolkata Knight Riders in 2011 for US$425,000 and he continues his association with the club to this day. He went on to play in the Bangladesh Premier League in 2012 as an 'icon player' and later for Adelaide Strikers in the Big Bash and Barbados Tridents in the Caribbean Premier League.
His all-round performance for KKR in 2014 inspired the team to their first IPL triumph. He scored 227 runs in 11 innings and also picked up 11 wickets in that season of the tournament.
#2 Herschelle Gibbs (2011)
Herschelle Gibbs was picked up by Deccan Chargers in the initial edition of the IPL in 2008. However, some lacklustre performances saw him being put up for sale. But a strong comeback season followed in 2009, where his form saw Deccan Chargers win four consecutive matches at the onset of the season.
His unbeaten 53 in the finals helped Deccan Chargers become the second team to raise the IPL. With such performances behind him and a killer reputation in the international circuit, it was an ignominy that Gibbs went unsold in the 2011 edition. None of the franchises could find a place for him and he was left out.
He, however, signed up by Mumbai Indians in 2012 for a fee of US$50,000. But he failed to make much of an impact and never played in the IPL since then.
#3 Sanath Jayasuriya (2011)
Another swashbuckling opener that was ignored in the 2011 auctions was Sanath Jayasuriya.
With the reputation of a big-hitting all-rounder, Jayasuriya was picked up by Mumbai Indians in the inaugural edition of the IPL and went on to become the third highest run-getter in the season with 514 runs in 14 matches.
He blasted a 48-ball 114 in the inaugural season and followed it up with a quick fire 48 not-out in 17 balls against KKR to inspire the largest victory in T20 history in terms of balls remaining.
However, his exploits were not deemed good enough to warrant an offer in the 2011 auctions and he never took part in the IPL after 2010.
He, however, represented Khulna Royal Bengals and Kandurata Warriors in the Bangladesh Premier League and Sri Lankan Premier League respectively.
#4 David Hussey (2014)
David Hussey is one legendary T20 name you least expect in this list. He has played a whopping 258 T20 matches and is a legend in his own right in this format.
He was chosen by Kolkata Knight Riders from 2008-2010 for US$625,000 and Kings XI Punjab from 2011-2013 for US$ 1.4 million, making him the second most expensive overseas player.
His crash-and-bash approach had won him a fee above that of the likes of Ricky Ponting and his brother, Michael Hussey. With an average above 30, all-round capabilities and invaluable experience, David Hussey was everything an IPL team would covet.
He even captained Kings XI Punjab in 2012, in Gilchrist's absence.
Yet no team wanted him in 2014. Hussey is one of the luminaries of T20 cricket. Chennai Super Kings, however, seemed to realise they made a blunder by not going for him, and he was called up in the same season when Dwyane Bravo was injured.
#5 Imran Tahir (2014)
The Pakistani-born leg spinner, plying his trade for South Africa was a journeyman. He had represented over 25 domestic teams, and T20 was his forte.
He was South Africa's highest wicket taker in the 2014 World T20 and also the tournament's highest wicket-taker along with Netherlands' Ahsan Malik.
He had also won T20 cricketer of the year award the previous year. Yet, he had no takers in the sixth edition of IPL. That the auctions came in the immediate aftermath of his remarkable feats in T20 makes it even more baffling.
Tahir has 156 wickets in 134 matches in T20s at an average of 21.08. His economy of 6.88 makes him an even better T20 bowler. His googly is his biggest weapon, although his other variations are also worth mentioning. He also rose to no.2 in the T20I bowler's rankings.
Tahir, however, was picked up by Delhi Daredevils in the same season when Coulter-Nile was out injured. He continues to represent the Delhi franchise, even though the team constantly shuffles their personnel, after putting up some impressive numbers.
#6 RP Singh (2014)
RP Singh may not be a big name in T20 cricket. However, in IPL, where there are no restrictions on the number of Indian players that can be in the playing eleven, it was rare for an Indian player to miss out in the auctions.
Besides, this left-arm seamer was the highest wicket taker in the 2009 edition of the IPL and walked away with the Purple Cap award.
His performances earned him a comeback to the Indian team for the 2009 World Twenty20. His 90 wickets in IPL also places him 11th in the all-time wicket-takers list in IPL. After representing Deccan Chargers till 2010, he joined Kochi Tuskers for the 2011 edition.
He also represented Mumbai Indians and Royal Challengers Bangalore in the following seasons. His crucial final delivery no-ball for RCB against CSK in the 2013 edition that cost RCB the match seemed to be in the mind of the franchise owners when they bid in 2014.
He had no takers for a base price of 1 crore and it was not until 2016 that he won a contract again when Rising Pune Supergiants picked him up.
#7 Usman Khawaja (2016)
Usman Khawaja had a breakthrough season in 2015-16 for his Big Bash franchise, Sydney Thunder. He scored a whopping 345 runs in just 4 innings, 3 of which were match-winners.
But it was not just in T20s that he was flourishing. He was in incredible touch right through the season for country and club alike.
Since the Gabba Test against New Zealand, Khawaja's scores across formats read 174, 9*, 121, 109*, 144, 56, 62, 104* and 70. It totals to a mammoth 849 runs at 141.5 across all formats. His form had Aussie selector, Mark Waugh commenting, "He is batting as well as anyone can possibly bat."
Yet his exploits did not budge the IPL franchises to bid for him and he went unsold in 2016. But surely, such form cannot keep out someone for long and Khawaja was called up by Rising Pune Supergiants when Kevin Pietersen was out injured.
#8 Hashim Amla (2016)
Hashim Amla is not someone you associate with T20 cricket. However, his numbers suggest a totally different story. He averages above 30 in the format at a strike rate of 126, and has 20 half centuries to his name with a highest of 97*.
Despite his inclination to play shots down the ground, a trait scowled upon in this format, he has found ways to score above a run-a-ball.
His ability to pierce even the smallest of gaps in the infield has enabled him to overtake his flamboyant international opening partner, Quinton De Kock, on most occasions. Hence, his inability to attract an IPL bid in the 2016 edition was a surprise.
Kings XI Punjab seemed to realise his capability and he was called up when Shaun Marsh had a back injury ruling him out of the season. He played in six matches scoring a total of 157 runs, including a 96, partially justifying his call-up.
#9 Martin Guptill (2016)
Guptill had just scored the highest individual score in a World Cup when he hammered a 237 not-out against West Indies. It was also the second highest score in ODIs. With an average of 34 and two hundreds to show for, his T20 record is impressive.
His brilliant fielding adds another dimension to his skills and with a rich vein of form behind him, a bid for him in the IPL auctions was a no-brainer. But, he found no takers and was left unsold. He had won the Richard Hadlee medal in 2011-12 and was also named as New Zealand's ODI and T20 player of the year.
He had already played in the Big Bash and Caribbean Premier League but an IPL contract seemed to elude him.
However, it did not turn out that way as he earned a contract with Mumbai Indians when their mainstay opener, Lendl Simmons, was forced out due to injury. Guptill, however, got to play just three games and failed to impress in any of them.
#10 Tillakaratne Dilshan (2014, 2015, 2016)
Dilshan was an integral cog of Royal Challengers Bangalore outfit from 2011-13, forming a potent opening partnership with Chris Gayle. With an unorthodox technique, he invented the 'Dilscoop', unleashing it with tremendous success in the 2009 World T20.
One of the select few players to have scored over 10,000 ODI runs, Dilshan had made opening the batting seem like a cakewalk. He also became one among the few to register a century in all formats of the game when he scored an unbeaten 104* from 54 balls against Australia in Kandy in 2011.
Despite his heroics for Sri Lanka and RCB, he has been out of favour with the IPL franchises since 2013, when he last featured.
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