List of unsold players shows teams setting the performance bar higher

No takers for these stars

- Rasesh Mandani

Finding no takers in the IPL auction room is seen to carry an underlying message. Those on the wrong end of 30s, decipher the message quickly. To those younger, it's a reality check that their skills weren't considered elite enough to compete in the biggest T20 extravaganza.

A total of 182 players were sold over two days in the 2025 mega auction. More than double the number, 395 players, went unsold. Of them, 145 were capped players. Only 12 of them were India internationals. Prithvi Shaw was one of them, a classic case of young talent going to waste. The other was all-rounder Shardul Thakur. It's a lonely place to be.

Shardul, 33, is experiencing how quickly a bad turn can arrive in sport.

The Mumbai player was the fifth highest priced (₹10.75 crore) player in the 2022 IPL auction. He was traded - Delhi Capitals to Kolkata Knight Riders - for the same prize in 2023. Last year, CSK bought him for ₹4 crore.

One of Shardul's biggest utilities has been his wicket-taking knack, backed by his lower-order ball-striking. He has been most useful in ODI cricket. In Tests, Shardul found a unique position, becoming India's pace-bowling all-rounder for overseas conditions.