The IPL 2022 mega auction is rapidly gaining its momentum, and the entire globe is anticipating the two-day event, which will take place in Bengaluru on 12th and 13th February. As teams try to rebuild their squads around their core set of players that were retained, some high-profile players from across the world will be up for auction.
The majority of the retained players have hefty compensation packages, yet in comparison to the talent they display, even those packages appear to be inadequate.
Aside from that, some players have departed prior franchises in order to improve their chances at the auction table. Because of the auction’s unexpected nature, it was commonly assumed that players wanted to be kept by their present clubs rather than go to the auction.
This popular belief was however questioned this year when players like Ishan Kishan and Shreyas Iyer opted to attend the auction after apparently rejecting offers from a few franchises. Given their respective personalities and track records, both of these players are likely to command a high price at the auction, and their refusal to accept less is being praised as a clever move.
However, not every player has the same viewpoint. Some people place a higher value on connections and team spirits than on money, opting to stay with their current franchise despite the fact that they could have easily obtained more money if they had entered the bidding war.
Some high-profile athletes choose to accept whatever deal was offered to them by their respective teams.
Here are five cricketers who may have easily fetched more money if they had gone to auction:
1. Ruturaj Gaikwad
Gaikwad, the IPL’s youngest player to win the Orange Cap, has extended his contract with CSK for an annual salary of Rs 4 crore. He was one of the MS Dhoni squad’s best performers. By scoring 635 runs in last year IPL’s edition, he proved his metal also proved that if he came in an auction, he would have comfortably fetched more money at the auction table.
2. Jasprit Bumrah
Bumrah, perhaps India’s best fast bowler at a time, was retained for barely Rs 12 crore by five-time winners Mumbai Indians. We’ve seen clubs pay ridiculous amounts of money to sign top-tier bowlers, and Bumrah would have been the hottest item if he had entered the auction.
3. Kieron Pollard
For many years, Kieron Pollard has been a devoted Mumbai Indians’ soldier who saved his team’s pride many times in bad times. The franchise couldn’t give him more than Rs 6 crore because of some retention issues, but he didn’t object. An all-rounder of his calibre would have brought far more at auction.
4. Sunil Narine
Among all retained players, the West Indies mystery spinner saw the highest wage drop. KKR chose Narine as their fourth-choice retention and offered him a deal of Rs 6 crore, down from Rs 8.5 crore last year. But he didn’t object like an honest and devoted team member.
5. Anrich Nortje
In the previous two seasons, as a member of the Delhi Capitals, the South African fast bowler took 34 wickets and was instrumental in the team’s triumph. He was, however, kept for only Rs 6 crore, a price that does not reflect his talent. If the trend continues, he might easily have earned more than Rs 10 crore at the IPL auction if he enters it.
