3 players who played less than 10 matches in IPL 2023 but earned more than ₹10 crore

IPL 2023 will conclude on Monday, May 29, with a grand finale between defending champions Gujarat Titans and four-time winners Chennai Super Kings. The match was supposed to take place on Monday, but due to heavy rains in Ahmedabad, the game had to be pushed to the reserve day.

This year's cash-rich league witnessed one of the most exciting races to the playoffs. Only one team made it to the playoffs until the last weekend of the league stage.

Several players justified their hefty price tags in IPL 2023. The Mumbai Indians (MI) raised quite a few eyebrows at the auction when they signed Cameron Green for ₹17.5 crore. However, the Australian all-rounder proved his worth by scoring 452 runs and picking up six wickets in 16 matches.

Green played in all league matches and playoff games for the Mumbai Indians this season.

Here's a list of three such players who had contracts worth more than ₹10 crore and they played less than 10 matches for their respective franchises.

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#1 Ben Stokes (Chennai Super Kings)

The Chennai Super Kings made their most expensive signing in IPL history at the mini-auction last December. They went all-out for England's star all-rounder Ben Stokes and roped him in for ₹16.25 crore.

Stokes played only one match in the last two years, which is why fans were a little surprised to see a team like CSK go hard for him at the auction.

The cricket universe expected Stokes to make a roaring comeback to IPL under MS Dhoni's captaincy. However, fitness issues did not allow him to play regularly. He played in the first two games before getting injured.

While Stokes recovered soon, the Super Kings kept him on the bench because they had no place in their playing XI to fit him.

The all-rounder returned home after the IPL 2023 league stage to prepare for England's Test against Ireland.

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#2 Wanindu Hasaranga (Royal Challengers Bangalore)

The Royal Challengers Bangalore retained their Sri Lankan all-rounder Wanindu Hasaranga for ₹10.75 crore before the IPL 2023 season.

Hasaranga was unavailable for the first few matches due to Sri Lanka's tour of New Zealand. The leg-spinner then suffered an injury in the final phase of the league round.

He managed to play only eight matches in the tournament, scoring 33 runs and scalping nine wickets. Hasaranga's economy rate increased from 7.54 to 8.9 this year.

New Zealand all-rounder Michael Bracewell took his place in the team in the last few games.

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#3 Liam Livingstone (Punjab Kings)

Liam Livingstone was retained for ₹11.5 crore by the Punjab Kings ahead of the IPL 2023 season.

The England all-rounder arrived late as he was recovering from an injury when the season began. There were question marks over his availability for IPL 2023 as well, but Livingstone joined the Kings squad and played nine matches for them.

The England star scored 279 runs in nine matches at a strike rate of 163.16. He also bowled nine overs for the team, where he picked up two wickets.