IPL 2018: 5 most overrated Indian players

We are just weeks away from the start of the 11th edition of the Indian Premier League. Other than the total of 18 players retained by eight franchises, everyone else went under the hammer during the auction on January 27th and 28th.

Though there were 578 players who participated in the auction, only 169 were sold as franchises were very specific about whom they want in their team. Also, they were willing to go the extra mile for certain players, especially domestic talents.

Given the restrictions of only four foreign players in a matchday squad, franchises focused a lot on the Indian players. Some domestic players saw their base price multiplied by 20 or 30 times as a result of a bidding war between franchises.

Many deserve their price tag while some are definitely overrated. Without much ado, let’s take a look at the 5 most overrated Indian players in the IPL 2018.

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#5 Manish Pandey, Sunrisers Hyderabad

Manish Pandey is one of the most overrated players of Indian cricket right now

Manish Pandey headlined the day 1 of IPL auction as Sunrisers Hyderabad paid Rs 11 crores to buy the Indian middle order batsman. As many as five teams fought for his signature but in the end, SRH brought him for a whopping fee.

This will be his 11th IPL tournament and he has played 103 IPL games so far and scored 2215 runs at an average of 28.39 and a strike rate of only 120.11, which includes a hundred and 9 fifties. Also, his international T20 record isn't great either. He is yet to become a regular in the side and his consistency is below-par.

Though he is a good batsman and an excellent hitter, only on a very few occasions he has played match-defining innings. Pandey is more of a leg-side player and teams have often restricted him because of his inability to play all around the wicket.

#4 Kedar Jadhav, Chennai Super Kings

Kedar Jadhav has done nothing incredible to warrant a huge price tag

Dhoni's liking for utility cricketers is a known fact. It was clearly evident once again in the IPL 2018 auction as Chennai Super Kings went hard for Kedar Jadhav and brought him for a huge money, 7.80 crores.

The Maharashtra batsman has played 64 IPL games so far and scored only 893 runs at an average of 23.50 and a strike rate of 134.89, which includes 3 fifties. Also, his international record is very poor. In 9 T20I games for India, the 32-year-old has scored only 122 runs at an average of 20.33 and a strike rate of 123.23.

His current form is really patchy and he is in more of a hit or a miss batsman at the moment. Chennai Super Kings took a huge risk by investing a lot of money on him. He is definitely one of the overrated cricketers in India and 7.80 crores is a tad too much for the 32-year-old.

#3 Ishan Kishan, Mumbai Indians

Mumbai Indians has taken a big gamble in Ishan Kishan

Mumbai Indians always makes some surprising buys in the IPL auction and 2018 is no exception. Uncapped Indian batsman from Jharkhand, Ishan Kishan was brought by the Mumbai Indians for a stunning 6.2 crore.

For a player with no international experience and only limited T20 or IPL experience, he is definitely overrated and 6.2 crore is a lot of money.

The 19-year-old will be playing only in his third IPL tournament and his career T20 record isn't great either. Kishan has played 41 T20 games so far and scored 919 runs at an average of 22.97 and a strike rate of 124.18, which includes 4 fifties.

Though he did well for the Gujarat Lions in IPL 2017, Kishan has a long way to go before staking his claim as a good T20 player. It may turn out to be a disaster or masterstroke from Mumbai Indians, but only time will tell.

#2 KL Rahul, Kings XI Punjab

Rahul has not done enough in T20's to deserve his IPL paycheck

After missing the Indian Premier League 2017 because of an injury, Lokesh Rahul made an expensive entry into IPL 2018 when Kings XI Punjab bought him for a whopping Rs 11 crores after some intense bidding war.

The Karnataka batsman is a technically gifted cricketer who has scored a lot of runs in the longer formats in domestic cricket. He was successful for India in Tests and also to an extent in IPL 2016 before an injury hit him hard. He never regained the form after making his comeback from injury.

Moreover, Rahul is not a natural T20 player. Also, neither is he in a good form at the moment nor proved his credibility at scoring runs quickly and consistently. Though he is a great player, Rs 11 crore is too much for him considering his recent struggles.

#1 Jaydev Unadkat, Rajasthan Royals

Easily the most overrated player in IPL 2018

Left-arm Indian seamer Jaydev Unadkat was the costliest Indian player in the IPL 2018 auction, fetching a startling Rs 11.5 crore deal from the Rajasthan Royals. Following a bidding war between Kings XI Punjab and CSK, his price soared from a base price of Rs 1.5 Cr to end up at Rs 11.5 Cr.

Unadkat had a great IPL 2017. He took 24 wickets at 13.41 for Rising Pune Supergiant. However, his recent performances for the national team and in the domestic tournaments were below par.

He did not do well in the South Africa T20 series and also in the ongoing Nidahas T20 Tri-Series, going at an economy of more than 8 an over in every game he played. It was really hard to find any reason why the Rajasthan Royals think tank spent a lot of money on him.