Amidst the rising COVID-19 cases and strict protocols laid by the government, we had the principal cricket governing body of India, the BCCI organizing a grand and successful players auction ahead of IPL 2021 at Chennai on the 18th of February. Inspite of the tournament stretching over a period of 2 months and strict biosecure bubbles put in place to ensure the safety of the players, we had a number of cricketers, both overseas and indian players registering themselves for the auction.
Among these were names like Chris Morris, who became the costliest buy in the history of the league, Glenn Maxwell, Jhye Richardson, Jamieson, Meredith and Gowtham, who earned the biggest bid among uncapped Indian players. While many of the Indian youngsters did well, we had some who couldn’t fetch a single bid and went unsold in the auction. The reality was indeed hard to digest but this is surely not the end as players can still get a chance to ply their trade if an unfortunate injury turns up for their selected Indian counterparts. In the below piece, we look at 5 Indian players, who went unsold at mini-auction ahead of IPL 2021 and can be picked later:
1. Avi Barot
A prolific right-hand batsman from Saurashtra, who turned heads with his performance at SMAT 2021, smashing 283 runs from 5 games at an average of 56.60 and strike rate of 184.96, Barot going unsold at the mini-auction for IPL 2021 came as a shock to many.
His best score of 122 during SMAT 2021 is a huge indication of his ability to bat for long and convert a good start into a significant big score. The knock came against Goa as a part of Elite Group D fixtures. Owing to Barot’s marathon innings of 122(53), Saurashtra posted 215-5 in their 20 overs and later restricted Goa for a mere total of 125, winning the contest by a hefty margin of 90 runs.
2. Vishnu Solanki
A right-hand wicketkeeper-batsman from Baroda, whose selection for playing in IPL 2021 was considered as confirming given his showing at SMAT 2021, where the batsman plundered 267 runs from 8 games at an average of 53.40 and strike rate of 128.36, Solanki’s unfortunate fate of going unsold at the mini-auction was hard for many to digest.
His highest score in the T20 tournament came against Haryana during the quarter-final stage of SMAT 2021. Chasing 149 for victory, Baroda, owing to Solanki’s stellar knock of 71(46), achieved the target by 8 wickets and made their way into the semi-finals of the coveted competition.
3. Vivek Singh
Having registered himself as an all-rounder at the mini-auction ahead of IPL 2021, Bengal’s very own, Singh got unlucky while all the other all-rounders were bought at a good price by the respective franchises. The Bengal player struck 208 runs from 5 games at an average of 69.33 and strike rate of 157.57 at the recently concluded SMAT 2021.
His highest score in the tournament came against Jharkhand as a part of the Elite Group B fixtures. Bengal, who batted first, posted 161-6 courtesy a century off 64 balls by Singh and later halted the opposition at 145-9, clinching the contest by 16 runs and justifying the valiant knock.
4. Chaitanya Bishnoi
A batting all-rounder from Haryana, who bats left-handed and bowls left-arm orthodox spin, Bishnoi had plenty of things going his way which would have certainly guaranteed him a bid at the celebrated IPL auction. Unfortunately, he had to face the disgraceful feeling of rejection as none of the franchises bidding for him even once.
The southpaw performed decently for Haryana at SMAT 2021, scoring 153 runs from 6 games at an average of 30.60 and strike rate of 128.57. His best innings came against Kerala as a part of the Elite Group E fixtures. Batting first, Haryana managed a commanding total of 198-6 in the 20 overs, where Bishnoi stroked a fluent knock of 45(29). In return, Kerala put up a fight, posting 194-6 in their 20 overs and lost the contest by mere 4 runs.
5. Simarjeet Singh
A right-arm medium pacer from Delhi, who formed a wonderful bowling trio along with Sangwan and Ishant at SMAT 2021, Simarjeet’s non-selection at the IPL 2021 auction this year is a clear indication that his time is yet to come at the biggest stage. Thus said, he can still make the cut and may also play his first game at the lucrative league, a dream cherished by many Indian youngsters.
Simarjeet was amongst the wickets at SMAT 2021 as he snapped up 7 scalps from 5 games at an average of 20.14 and an economy rate of 8.81. His best spell came against Andhra Pradesh as a part of the Elite Group E fixtures. Courtesy Simarjeet’s spell of 2-21, Andhra Pradesh were stalled at 124-9 in their 20 overs. The Delhi side then, chased down the total by 6 wickets and 18 balls to spare, securing a comfortable victory in what turned out to be a one-sided affair.
