The IPL's super-snubs

Brian Lara, 2011 auction

Base Price - $400,000

Lara had largely been out of action for nearly three years when he put his name in for the 2011 auction. At 41, Lara's only experience of T20 cricket had come in the form of three matches in Zimbabwe's domestic circuit the year before, and he was trying to make a comeback of sorts. Unfortunately, he would find no buyer at the auction, missing out on joining the growing list of players to have been part of both the Indian Cricket League and the IPL.

Sanath Jayasuriya, 2011 auction

Base Price - $200,000

Despite going at half of Lara's base price and a smashing opening season to back it up, Jayasuriya's was another case of older, non-performing players being snubbed. A poor 2009 season, which he finished with just 221 runs from 12 matches , and higher standards for overseas selections due to the limited spots available, meant his time in the tournament was all but over.

Sourav Ganguly, 2011 auction

Base Price - $400,000

Dropped by his home franchise, Kolkata Knight Riders, Sourav Ganguly attracted no bids at such a high base price. While he would later be snapped up by Pune Warriors in the middle of the season as replacement for the injured Ashish Nehra, it was yet another reminder that form, age and potential carried much more value than reputation and star status.

Chris Gayle, 2011 auction

Base Price - $400,000

Having rejected the West Indies Cricket Board's annual retainer contract on the eve of the tournament, Gayle found himself in the "unsold" bucket, largely due to his high base price and uncertainty over his availability for the entire season due to international commitments. But, like Ganguly, his time would come just two weeks into the tournament, called up by Royal Challengers Bangalore after Dirk Nannes picked up an injury. He went on to blast 608 runs, including two centuries, in the 12 matches he played. Since then, there has been no looking back for the Jamaican superstar, as he continues to plunder bowling attacks at will for his franchise.

Kevin O'Brien, 2012 auction

Base Price - $50,000

The one player on this list who cannot compare to the rest in terms of star value, O'Brien is precisely the kind of story franchises have embraced time and again in the past. After performances such as that manic century that sunk England in the 2011 World Cup, O'Brien had shot into prominence, and Kochi Tuskers Kerala had already approached Cricket Ireland to sign him up as a reserve player for the 2011 edition. Unfortunately, he was ineligible as per IPL rules, having not enlisted himself in the long list for the auction. O'Brien, however, continued to enhance his reputation and smashed the fastest domestic T20 hundred in English cricket, and looked like a shoo-in for franchises at his base price. Surprisingly, though, he was unsold, and his reputation has since taken a hit.

Aaron Finch, 2013 auction

Base Price - $200,000

Finch had just had a lean run in Australia's three home T20 internationals after completing one of his better seasons in the Big Bash League for Melbourne Renegades, when a combination of recency bias and high base price rendered him team-less for the 2013 season. Eventually, like all near-misses do, he was called up by Pune Warriors as replacement for his national team captain Michael Clarke, who was ruled out with a back injury. Finch has since found buyers at all auctions, and now plays for Gujarat Lions.

Kumar Sangakkara, 2015 auction

Base Price - INR 1 Crore (approx. $150,000)

Sangakkara's run of 120 runs from 9 games in the 2013 season, followed by his opting out of the auction in 2014 due to international commitments, meant his goal of securing a better contract in 2015 proved fruitless. Franchises had swiftly moved on, as they have often shown. Besides, after retirement from international cricket, Sangakkara's stock seemed to be on the wane, at least amongst franchise owners. Two years on, he continues to ply his trade across the world in similar franchise T20 competitions.

Martin Guptill, 2016 auction

Base Price - INR 1 Crore (approx. $148,000)

Guptill was one of only eight "marquee" players unsold at the 2016 auction. He could not find a buyer even when franchises requested for a second round under the hammer. His New Zealand captain Kane Williamson said he would have picked Guptill if he owned a team. And then, in the third week of the tournament, he finally took the flight to India, replacing the injured Lendl Simmons in the Mumbai Indians squad. This year, Guptill was picked up during the second iteration, and it was Kings XI Punjab that broke the eerie silence in the room.

Imran Tahir, 2017 auction

Base Price - INR 50 Lakh (approx. $75,000)

Despite his unassuming base price, the No. 1 ODI and T20 bowler in the world went unsold this year. After three patchy seasons with Delhi Daredevils, it was another reminder that international form and achievements count for little beyond a point. Tahir, however, has now found a home, with Rising Pune Supergiants calling him up after Mitchell Marsh pulled out with an injury.

Ishant Sharma, 2017 auction

Base Price - INR 2 Crore (approx. $300,000)

Ishant has not played an international limited-overs game in over a year, and last played a T20 international in 2013. He also has not particularly stood out for his consistency in the IPL. While that only makes his base price inexplicable, Indian cricketers in the IPL have got away with such outrageous numbers in the past, considering each side has at least seven starting slots to fill and a minimum of 14 slots in the squad. With a number of India's international stars now pulling out of the tournament due to injuries from a long home season, he could yet have a shot at playing some part of this year's edition.