3 T20 Specialists who weren't picked in IPL 2018

The IPL player auction was held in Bangalore on January 27 and 28 this year. All the teams rebuilt themselves from scratch and spent a lot of money on the players. While the auction marked a few record-breaking signings and few players leaving their sides after playing for 7 or 8 years, it also featured many big names who remained unsold at the end of the auction.

While most of the players didn't really deserve to be the IPL, few players had a great year afterwards which would have made the team coaches and selectors regret their choice to not bid for them. They would've wanted to sign these players/

Here are the 3 players.

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#3 Jonny Bairstow (England)

Jonny Bairstow was yet another big name who was unsold last auction but he later admitted that he wasn't expecting him to be bought by a franchise. His performances for the England national side made the cricketing world turn on its head. He was a driving force in England's dream run to the top of the ICC ODI Rankings.

He scored 1025 runs in 22 matches while opening the batting for England and forged a very strong opening partnership with Jason Roy. He's a versatile batsman who can bat in all positions but was a revelation in the opening role for England. He scored four 100s and two 50s at an average of 48 and had a phenomenal strike rate of 120. He has proved on many occasions that he could become a good T20 player and has all the abilities.

He and Roy became known for giving the side fiery starts. He's also a very safe wicketkeeping option. Jonny Bairstow would want to keep the good form going and enhance his reputation as a big hitting opener.

#2 Colin Ingram (South Africa)

Colin Ingram has been in the cricketing circuit for more than 11 years and is a T20 specialist batsman. While his base price of 2 crore might of been a high asking price, he had more than enough experience and power to justify the price tag. The 33-year-old last played an international game in 2013 and has been playing around the world for different T20 franchises all over the world.

Colin Ingram would've been a valuable addition to the IPL last year

He played for Glamorgan, Kabul, Karachi Kings, Red Steel, and Adelaide Strikers to name a few. He scored 430 runs for Glamorgan while playing at number three at an average of 53.40 and a strike rate of 164.75 and won 3 Man of the Match awards. He had a decent outing when playing for Karachi Kings and Kabul scoring 450 runs in 19 innings at an average of 31 and strike rate of 140 but played a few crucial innings when he batted at number 4 and number 5.

He played 9 games for Adelaide Strikers in the KFC Big Bash League scoring 225 runs in 9 games where he played the role of a finisher and averaged 38.33 scoring at a strike rate of 154.47 and received one Man of the Match. He had been performing excellently preceding IPL 2018 as well scoring 788 runs in 24 innings averaging 37 at a strike rate of 149.

Colin showed his experience and class scoring about 1300 runs in 45 innings averaging about 40 with a strike rate of 152 and could have been a valuable asset had he been picked in the IPL.

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#1 Travis Head (Australia)

Travis Head

Travis Head was drafted into the Australian ODI team after David Warner and Steve Smith got banned for a year. A T20 specialist and a batsman who can bat in many positions, Head played for the RCB in 2017 but was not picked in 2018. While his previous records might have pulled him down, his current stats suggest that he would've had a great IPL.

Travis Head scored nearly 1300 runs for the Australian ODI side averaging 37 and at a strike rate of 97. He preferred opening the innings when he scored 494 runs in 10 innings averaging nearly 50 and with a strike rate of 104. He scored one 100 and 4 fifties in this position while he scored about 800 runs in the other positions averaging 35 and a strike rate of 89.

He scored 546 runs in 15 matches averaging 46 runs at a strike rate of 140. He preferred the number 3 position and he scored 494 runs in 12 innings while playing in that position averaging 55 and with a strike rate of 142. He got 3 Man of the Match awards and scored two 50s and played for Worcestershire and the Adelaide Strikers.

He would have been a valuable addition to the IPL and would've provided balance to many lineups. He could've benefited teams like Mumbai Indians or Rajasthan Royals who lacked a proper opener or experience in their overseas players and was well worth the price tag. He will be an option for teams to consider buying this season.