10 active Indian international players who are not a part of IPL 8

The Indian Premier League (IPL) has grown over the years. And with the increased focus on building the team strategically and strengthening the weaknesses in the team, the franchisees have adopted a clever approach to squad selection.

In the initial seasons of the IPL, there was a hurried nature to the team selection, and more importance was given to established stars and Indian international players. There was a school of thought that players who had played for their national teams would be able to perform on the big stage.

Even Indian players who had an unsuccessful stint with the Indian team were preferred over domestic talent.

But there has been a paradigm shift in that regard, with the franchisees focusing more on unearthing talent, rather than going for established names. Due to this, many capped Indian players who have been a part of IPL before weren't picked by any IPL franchise this year, even though they are still active in the domestic circuit.

Most of them were part of the auction, but remained unsold.

Here’s the list:

1. Cheteshwar Pujara

Cheteshwar Pujara has been widely considered as a solid Test match player. He has never tasted success for India in the limited overs format in the few opportunities he has got, although he has proven his worth in the longer format. He was a part of the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) squad for the first three seasons but didn’t get regular game time.

Pujara then became a regular for Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) from 2011 to 2013 and Kings XI Punjab (KXIP) in 2014. He never made a lasting impact though, and was not picked up by any team in this year’s auction, despite being a regular for India in the Test format.

2. Abhinav Mukund

Abhinav Mukund, the classy left handed opener, never made it big for India despite being a heavy scorer for Tamil Nadu in the domestic circuit. But he remains on the national selector’s radar for Tests and can be considered as a backup opener, the role that he performed when he made his debut for India against England in 2011.

Mukund was a part of the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) for the first four seasons of IPL and rarely got a game. He joined CSK after contributing to India’s victorious U-19 team and grew in stature. He was selected by RCB in 2013 but failed to make an impact.

Despite being a top performer in Ranji trophy, Mukund wasn’t selected by any IPL team this year.

3. Lakshmipathy Balaji

Lakshmipathy Balaji, the wily fast bowler from Tamil Nadu, made a comeback of sorts to Indian cricket because of his excellent IPL performances for CSK and KKR. He made it to the squad for India’s tour to New Zealand in 2009, and some disciplined bowling for KKR in 2012 earned him a call-up to the Indian squad for the T20 World Cup.

Balaji was later selected by KXIP in 2014, but was expensive and was not able to sustain a place in the XI. Keeping in mind his age and his frequent injury troubles, he was released by KXIP and was not picked in the auction by any team this year.

4. Pankaj Singh

For a player who played his last Test match for India in August 2014, not being part of IPL 2015 must be a huge disappointment. He was one of the top wicket takers in the domestic circuit in 2014 and eventually made his debut for India in Tests against England.

Pankaj had played for the Rajasthan Royals (RR) and RCB in previous editions of the IPL and had performed well when given the opportunity. He has suffered injuries in the past and that could have probably deterred the IPL teams from picking him in this edition of the tournament.

5. RP Singh

At one point, Rudra Pratap Singh held the record for the most number of wickets in the IPL – 52. He had even won the Purple Cap in 2009 with Deccan Chargers. It is, therefore, extremely surprising that he is not playing in the IPL this year. He was unsold at this year’s auction, just like last year.

RP was a part of the Indian squad for the 2009 T20 World Cup and played his last game for India in an ODI against England in 2011. He had unsuccessful stints with Kochi Tuskers Kerala (KTK), Mumbai Indians (MI) and RCB in the next three years and he has not been a part of IPL since 2013.

6. Sudeep Tyagi

Sudeep Tyagi made his debut for India in a curtailed ODI against Sri Lanka in 2009 after some excellent performances for CSK and Uttar Pradesh. Having missed the entire 2008 season due to injury, Tyagi emerged as the spearhead of the CSK attack in 2009 and gained prominence.

He was retained by CSK from 2010-2012, but he never regained his past form. He also had frequent injury problems and has not been a part of IPL since 2012.

7. Manpreet Gony

Manpreet Gony made a rapid rise through the Indian cricket ranks. Having made his Punjab debut in 2007, he excelled for CSK in 2008, picking up 17 wickets in 16 games and scoring crucial runs lower down the order. He was drafted in as a replacement for Sreesanth on the tour to Bangladesh in June 2008.

That was the only series Gony was part of in Indian colours. He went on to represent Deccan Chargers in 2011 and KXIP in 2013 but didn’t make much of an impact, and hasn’t been a part of IPL since.

8. Munaf Patel

Munaf Patel played a huge role in India’s victorious 2011 World Cup campaign, but still remains out of the IPL loop. He was a mainstay during his time with Rajasthan Royals and frequently earned praise from Shane Warne for his consistency. His performances for RR helped him come back to Indian cricket and fetched him a bigger deal with MI in 2011.

Patel, however, suffered a decline in his performances after switching teams, and suffered lots of injuries. He was criticized for lacking the mentality to deal with his injuries and remained unsold in the 2014 and 2015 auctions, even though he had a base price of only Rs. 10 lakh.

9. Joginder Sharma

Joginder Sharma, the right handed fast bowler, made sporadic appearances for India from 2004 till 2007. He bowled the crucial last over for India in the T20 World Cup in 2007 and he was selected by CSK the following year.

Joginder was a part of CSK for four seasons. He however never made an impact and didn’t get many chances to play either. He also suffered a drop in his fitness levels and was released by CSK after IPL 2012.

Joginder has been part of the IPL auction every year from then on but hasn’t been selected by any team.

10. Venugopal Rao

Venugopal Rao represented India in 16 ODIs in the 2005-06 season. He was, however, unable to carve out a permanent spot in the middle order.

Rao was selected by the Deccan Chargers for IPL 2008 and was prolific for them. He represented them for two more seasons and went on to play for the Delhi Daredevils (DD) from 2011 to 2013.

He was released by DD for failing to make an impact and was picked by Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) in the 2014 auction. He was released after just one year from there, though, and wasn’t picked up by any team for IPL 8.