IPL 2018 : 5 players who would be disappointed by not going into the auction

IPL had a crazy auction this year. It was a two-day mega event which was held in Bengaluru. This year franchises showed interest in 169 players who were purchased at handsome prices.

IPL offers a platform to unknown talents to showcase their potential. This year 71 uncapped Indian players were purchased by the franchise.

Even players from Indian U-19 team that won the ICC World Cup in New Zealand 2018 were grabbed in this auction.

Prithvi Shaw and Kalra were picked by Delhi Daredevils while Shubman Gill went to KKR.

The Kolkata based franchise also purchased U-19 fast bowlers Kamlesh Nagarkoti and Shivam Mavi in excess of 3 crores.

Last year, Afghanistan players made their debut and this year Sandeep Lamichhane became the first cricketer from Nepal to join the IPL.

This year, Ben Stokes was the player who attracted the highest bid. He was purchased by Rajasthan Royals for a price of 12.5 crores at the auction.

This year each franchise were pretty clear in their approach. Indian wicket-keeper batsmen were the hot picks in the auction.

Players like Ishan Kishan, Dinesh Karthik, Sanju Samson and Robin Uthappa received huge bids.

Franchises also showed a keen interest in fast bowlers. Jaydev Unadkat received an astonishing 11.5 crore bid.

Teams were pretty focused while purchasing foreign players. Game changers like Mitchell Starc, Chris Lynn, Jofra Archer and Rashid Khan signed huge deals with their respective teams.

There were players who were retained by the franchise prior to the auction. Most of these players received huge prices but there were some players who would be disappointed after the completion of the auction.

These players probably would have received more, if they had gone into the auction. Here are those players :

---

#5 Rishabh Pant

Pant was outstanding in this year's Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy

Rishabh Pant was the first choice for retention by Delhi Daredevils which decreased their purse by 15 crores, but his actual salary is 8 crores.

At the auction, wicketkeepers received huge deals. Sanju Samson received the highest bid of 8 crores by Rajasthan Royals.

So, Pant would be a little disappointed at the price after watching the auction. He could have got a higher price due to his recent form.

Pant was outstanding in this year's Syed Mushtaq Ali trophy. He scored 411 runs in 10 innings at a destructive strike rate of 195.71.

In a match against Himachal Pradesh, Pant scored a blitzkrieg 116* off just 38 balls which helped Delhi to chase down the target of 145 by 10 wickets and in just 11.3 overs.

This record shows his worth and all franchises would have been tempted to have him in their side.

Pant's clean and continuous hitting would have attracted a lot of bids in the auction.

#4 Chris Morris

Morris has been one of the consistent performers for the Proteas in recent times

Delhi Daredevils stole Morris at a price of 7 crores. The South African all-rounder was destined to go for a price of 10 crores at the auction.

Morris has the capability to bowl beyond 140 kmph and bats fearlessly lower down the order. Morris played a devastating knock of 82 in 2016 against the Gujarat Lions which almost won Delhi the game. Morris was also the leading wicket-taker for Delhi.

Morris should have definitely participated in the auction as he would have got more than his retention price.

In 48 IPL matches, Morris has taken 53 wickets and scored 439 runs at a strike rate of 165.66.

#3 Andre Russell

Russell has played a pivotal role for KKR over the years

Russell was retained by KKR for a price of 7 crores.

The Windies all-rounder is a T20 and put some exciting efforts on the field as well. Russell is a merciless striker of the ball and is known to finish the games with powerful hitting.

He can also bowl four good overs in the T20 matches with a pace about 140 kmph.

In IPL, he has scored 574 runs in 34 innings with a strike rate of 173.41. He has also taken 31 wickets in those matches.

Russell has played a pivotal role for KKR over the years. It was a surprise that Russell settled for a 7 crore deal because he would have broken a few records in the bidding war at the auction.

#2 Bhuvneshwar Kumar

Bhuvi won the purple cap in the last two editions of the IPL

Today Bhuvaneshwar Kumar is one of the best T20 bowlers in the world.

He has been exceptional in the IPL over the years. In 2016, he was awarded the purple cap award, as he picked up 23 wickets in 16 matches that season at an economy rate of 7.42.

He improved his tally in the IPL 2017, Bhuvi grabbed 26 wickets in 14 matches at an economy rate of 7.05. He again took away the purple cap in 2017.

Kumar has improved a lot as a bowler from where he started in International cricket. He can now bowl slower ones to deceive the batsmen, yorkers at death overs and knuckle-ball to get the breakthroughs.

Bhuvi missed the chance at the auction as he was retained by Sunrisers for 8.5 crores. He would have got way more at the auction as every franchise want a player who could bowl both in the powerplay and death overs.

Even Unadakat went for 11.5 crores to the Rajasthan Royals, so it was a highly likely that Kumar had a chance at the to be the top buy at the auction.

#1 Jasprit Bumrah

Bumrah is currently the No.1 ODI bowler in the world

Mumbai Indians retained Jasprit Bumrah for just 7 crores. The deal was a steal for MI because he was exceptional in last year's IPL and he bowled a superb super over for them which won them the thriller match against Gujarat Lions.

Jasprit Bumrah is an unorthodox bowler who with his peculiar action and his release point makes the life difficult for the batsmen.

His pace and ability to bowl constant yorkers set him apart from all the contemporary bowlers.

In his 16 matches last year, he picked up 20 wickets for the team. Today Bumrah is the prime bowler for India and is currently ranked No.1 in the ICC rankings.

There won't be any franchise in the IPL who would not have wanted Bumrah in their squad. There were few teams who badly needed a good Indian fast bowler who could bowl at death and they would have paid anything for Bumrah, if he had participated in the auction.

He could have given a stiff competition to Stokes in the auction.