In the mega IPL auctions, there were plenty of big-ticket signings as teams wanted to shore up their options for the season. There was an intense auction war for players as a result of which, prices shot through the roof for few players.
KL Rahul, Manish Pandey, Ben Stokes, and Manish Pandey were the players in the top bracket at the auctions, but barring Rahul, who was prolific for the Kings XI Punjab, none of the other players could justify the hefty price tagged to them.
Hence, as the franchises look around for options ahead of the auction for the next season, several of these big-ticket buys could be palmed off, as per a report in Mumbai Mirror.
Manish Pandey failed to get going
Manish Pandey, who attracted Rs 11 crore last season, had a below-par season with the bat and never got going and had to be eventually benched by the Sunrisers Hyderabad. He managed to score only 284 runs last season and struggled to up his strike rate, which forced the management to bench him even as the team made it to the finals. He could now be released as the franchise would want a couple of other fresh options up their sleeve.
Ben Stokes was also a disappointing case for Rajasthan Royals. After being adjudged the MVP in 2017, he was snapped up by the Jaipur-based franchise for a whopping Rs 12.5 crore but had a mediocre season with the bat and ball. He was shuffled up and down the order, but the runs never came as he could only score 196 runs and picked up just the solitary wicket. Also, owing to International commitments he missed the latter half of the tournament.
The franchise has all but made up their mind to release him, as even this year, he will be forced to miss a big chunk of the tournament due to the World Cup which follows the IPL.
As far as Jaydev Unadkat is concerned, he was a massive letdown for the franchise. After being impressive for the Rising Pune Supergiant in 2017, he was named in the Indian T20I team and hence, was acquired by the franchise for a hefty price of Rs 11.5 crore.
However, he could neither control the runs, nor could he pick up wickets right throughout the season. In 15 matches, he could pick up only 11 wickets and conceded runs at an economy rate of 9.65. He also lost his spot in the Indian team and this could force the franchise to sell him to beef up their purse for the auctions.
