Called the most lucrative league in the world, the Indian Premier League (IPL) is a great platform for budding young cricketers to showcase their talent and earn some money as well. The system of setting a base price by the player and then getting picked at an amount subject to requirement has been followed throughout these 13 years. While many players at the league got an amount worth their skill-sets, there were some, who were paid more than what they deserved. The intense bidding war and lack of required resources at the auction are some of the reasons for the exorbitant prices, going down in the history as expensive players of all time. On that note, let’s have a look at 5 overpaid players of all-time in IPL history:
1. Glenn Maxwell
One of the fierce strikers of the cricket ball going around, Maxwell hasn’t exactly delivered the kind of performance everyone expects him to at the IPL. Barring the 2014 season where he played a key role in helping PK make the final, Maxwell has conjured mediocre performances at the IPL, denying the right value for money.
Despite the above fact, Maxwell continues to remain one of the overpaid players at the auction, fetching handsome amounts. Having represented Punjab from 2014-2017, he was released ahead of the mega-auction for IPL 2018. Given his reputation in international cricket, he was bought by Delhi for 9 crores in IPL 2018.
Hapless, Maxwell could only score 169 runs from 12 matches at an average of 14.08 and strike rate of 140.83 that season, compelling DC to release him for next season. Having missed the 2019 season, he was back for the 2020 edition, going for a whopping 10.75 crores to PK.
Yet again, he had a flop outing with the bat that season, scoring just 108 runs from 13 games at an average of 15.42 and strike rate of 101.88. After this performance, nobody expected him to be picked for IPL 2021, but surprising everyone to the core, RCB bought him for an even higher price i.e. 14.25 crores, augmenting his value to an all-time high.
2. Yuvraj Singh
One of the architects behind India’s triumph in the inaugural edition of the T20 World Cup in 2007, Yuvraj hasn’t been at his best plying his trade for different franchises at the IPL. The man has found it difficult to emulate his performances for the country at the cash-rich league and thus augmented the headache for the franchises.
Inspite of this, his reputation as a genuine match-winner for India has seen him become one of the overpaid players at the auction. Yuvraj was bought for a mammoth 14 crores by RCB for the 2014 season, making him the costliest buy ever.
He did live up to the price tag somewhat, scoring 376 runs at an average of 34.18 and a strike rate of 135.2. Like any other franchise would do, RCB too released him ahead of the next season and aimed to buy him at a lesser amount.
But shattering all their expectations, Delhi availed his services for a gargantuan 16 crores, breaking the previous record held by him and writing a new one that remained intact till 2021. However, Yuvraj showed a further slump in form, scoring 248 runs in 14 matches at an average of 19.07 and strike rate of 118.09.
3. Chris Morris
A tall all-rounder from South Africa, Morris has been part of the league for quite some time now, plying his trade for different franchises. As a bowler, he can generate that extra pace and bounce off the surface making it difficult for opposition batsmen to score runs. While as a batsman, he can strike the ball long and handsome, making some crucial lower-order contributions.
That said, the amount which he has been paid so far is way more than anyone would have expected. Having played for the Delhi side from 2016 to 2019, he was released ahead of the 2020 season. Given the demand for all-rounders and express quick bowlers, Morris was picked at an enormous amount of 10 crores by RCB for IPL 2020, entering the list of overpaid players.
He did pick 11 wickets from 9 games at an average of 19.09 and an economy rate of 6.63, and also maintained a strike rate of 161.90 with the bat, but his injury issues brought an early end to his campaign. Been released for the same reasons by RCB, Morris in a life-changing event became the most expensive player in the history of the IPL, going for 16.25 crores to RR for the upcoming 2021 season.
4. Kedar Jadhav
A useful cricketer from Maharashtra, who went onto represent the country at the international level, Jadhav was at the peak of his powers during the 2018 season. He was a regular member of the ODI team around that time, doing the job with both bat and ball.
It is for this reason that CSK bidded heavily for him and bought him at 7.8 crores for the 2018 season. Unfortunately, the man could play just 1 game that season and missed out on the rest of the action due to an injury.
However, he was back fit and rejuvenated for the 2019 and 2020 seasons, shouldering the middle order responsibilities for the side. CSK expected a whole lot from him but the man wasn’t able to fulfil any, scoring 162 and 62 runs in the 2 seasons respectively and making this list of overpaid players.
With this being the last year before the mega-auction of 2022, CSK did the right thing of releasing him and picking another in-form player at the auction. Jadhav, though, will turn up for SRH in IPL 2021, having been picked at his base price of 2 crores.
5. Pat Cummins
Fast bowlers have been in high demand at the player’s auction for the last few editions. KKR, particularly have enjoyed operating with the likes of experienced overseas bowlers like Lee, Bond, Akhtar, Ferguson on the lively pitches of Eden Gardens, Kolkata.
It is this penchant for overseas pacers, which saw them go all-out for Cummins at the player’s auction for the 2020 edition, getting him at a colossal price of 15.5 crores. With that amount, the Australian pacer also became the costliest buy of that edition, grabbing limelight from all walks of life.
Cummins had a decent outing for them in the tournament contested at UAE, picking 12 wickets from 14 games at an average of 34.08 and economy rate of 7.86, but definitely not close to the amount spent on him. That said, he has been retained for the upcoming season at the same exorbitant price, indicating the faith which the franchise still has in him.
