IPL Auction 2016: Unsold XI

Of the 351 players that were in the pool for the IPL Auction 2016, only 94 were sold. As the vast majority of the players went unsold, it should come as no surprise if they are plenty of unhappy players.Also read: IPL 2016 Schedule, complete Time Table, Match Timings, PDF downloadWhile some of the players, like the uncapped players wouldn't have expected to be picked, there were plenty of internationals, who were unlucky to miss out. Shane Watson was the most expensive player but not all Australians had a good time at the IPL Auction 2016.In fact, there were plenty of them who went unsold. In this list, let us take a look at the best unsold XI from the IPL Auction 2016, who could give most teams a run for their money. While some players like Amla and Jayawardene were expected to be unsold, others were surprising.Also read: Want to win free IPL 9 match tickets? The Vivo IPL Dubsmash Contest is hereHere is the Unsold XI from the IPL Auction 2016:

#1 Martin Guptill

Guptill was unlucky to miss out

Despite being in fantastic form with the bat, Martin Guptill was the only marquee player to go unsold in the IPL Auction 2016. With over 4,500 runs in 151 games at an average in excess of 35 and a strike of almost 130, Guptill's records are certainly impressive, but none of the IPL teams wanted to pick him.

Whether that was because of the fact that he had never played in the IPL before or because his records aren't great in tricky conditions, nobody knows. But with a base price of just 50 lakhs, he was certainly a bargain that teams missed out on.

#2 Tillakaratne Dilshan

Dilshan’s falling standards cost him

Sri Lanka's current limited-overs side may not be in great shape, but one of the few good players that they still have is Tillakaratne Dilshan. Unfortunately for the Sri Lankan opener, the IPL teams didn't think that was the case as he joined Mahela Jayawardene in the list of unsold players.

While his record of almost 5,000 T20 runs is certainly impressive, the fact that he got them at an average of just 27 might have persuaded teams against signing him. Also, his base price of 1 crore might have been another thing that ensured he remained unsold.

#3 Usman Khawaja

Despite his stunning form, he found no takers

Being Usman Khawaja at the moment is unlikely to be especially easy. Ever since he came in, he has tried to best to shrug off the stereotype that he is a long-format player. And with his impressive outing in this year's Big Bash League, where he scored two centuries in four matches, he certainly showed that.

Unfortunately for him, he has neither been regularly picked in the Australian squad despite his regular form nor was he picked in the IPL Auction 2016. With a T20 average of almost 35, Khawaja is a more-than-handy opener, especially in India, where his ability to play would have come in handy, but unfortunately for him, he was unsold.

#4 George Bailey

Bailey was surprisingly unsold

There are some players who make a difference by their sheer presence and others whose impact you only feel when they are not there. George Bailey falls into the latter category and that is perhaps why none of the teams decided it was worth spending 1 crore and signing the former Australian captain.

Bailey's numbers in the format are certainly good, but he is not always just about the numbers. With his ability to handle pressure well and score big in crucial situations, he is a player that most teams would love to have. Unfortunately for him, his base price proved to be a deal-breaker as he went unsold in the IPL Auction 2016.

#5 David Hussey

Hussey’s wealth of experience will be sorely missed

When it comes to T20s, you simply cannot have a substitute for experience. And with over 250 T20 matches under his belt, there are few more experienced T20 players than David Hussey. Despite being just 40 runs shy of the 6,000 run-mark in T20s and having an impressive record around the world, David Hussey, much like his brother Mike, went unsold.

In Hussey's case, perhaps the base price wasn't as much of a problem as his age. While 1 crore isn't a great deal of money for an experienced campaigner when uncapped players are going for crores, it is when you consider he is 38 and will be in his 40s by the time his contract ends. So it was perhaps the reason why he went unsold in the IPL Auction 2016.

#6 Brad Haddin

The former Australian wicketkeeper lost out to younger players

Brad Haddin's performances in the Big Bash League for the Sydney Sixers showed that he can still cut it, but unfortunately for the former Australian wicketkeeper, that didn't stop him from being unsold in the IPL Auction 2016.

The two major reasons behind that were his high base price and a lot of competition for places. With a base price of 1.5 crore, it was always slightly unlikely that Haddin was going to be sold, especially when you consider there are several keepers, who are cheaper and younger than him. Secondly, given there were plenty of other foreign keepers, some of whom at a fraction of Haddin’s base price, it was easy to see why he went unsold in the IPL Auction 2016.

#7 Darren Sammy

The big-hitting West Indian was pipped by a younger compatriot

Ever since he was stripped of the West Indies' captaincy, Darren Sammy's stock has continued to fall. He didn't do especially well in the Big Bash League, where his weakness against the short ball was exploited and it should come as little surprise that he went unsold in the IPL Auction 2016.

Perhaps the more telling part of his snub is the fact that Sammy has a decent record in the format and can be a match-winner. While a look at his numbers will tell you that he isn't especially consistent, the fact that he turn a game on its head should have been enough to get him a bid, with a base price of just 50 lakhs.

Unfortunately for Sammy, it wasn't to be and he had to watch his compatriot, Carlos Brathwaite make a huge splash instead.

#8 Nathan Lyon

Lyon’s unlucky streat continued at the IPL Auction 2016

Given Lyon has played almost twice as many Tests as T20s, it shouldn't come as a surprise that the off-spinner was overlooked by the franchises in the IPL Auction 2016. Seeing as he only made his T20I debut for Australia, in the series against India last month, almost five years after his Test debut, it shouldn't surprise many that he wasn't given a second thought.

While 34 wickets in 28 matches is actually a decent return, the fact that he isn't considered a T20 specialist implies that he is perhaps one of those bowlers who are good in one format but aren't especially great in the other is what made the teams look the other. And his base price of 1 crore is unlikely to have helped in that regard.

#9 Pragyan Ojha

Ojha's career hasn't blossomed as he would have wanted it to

Pragyan Ojha hasn't really been the same since he re-modelled his action. While his overall T20 record is impressive and his numbers in the IPL are up there with the best spinners, the 29-year-old didn't find any suitors in the IPL Auction 2016.

A sign of how low his stock has fallen can be seen in the fact that he wasn't even mentioned when there was talk of spinners for the World T20. As someone who has represented India 48 times across all formats that would probably have come as a rude awakening. Although his base price of 50 lakh wasn't exorbitant, he found no takers and thus went unsold.

#10 James Pattinson

Pattinson can concentrate on getting back fighting fit for a place in the Test team

23 T20 matches in almost 4 years is not good track record. And it is precisely because of his injury-prone nature that James Pattinson missed the cut in the IPL Auction 2016. That and the fact that he had a base price of 1.5 crore, the highest among all the players in this unsold XI.

As Praveen Kumar seems to have understood, just because you have a big base price and have played for your country does not mean you will be picked in the auction. Perhaps next season, if the 25-year-old is fit and firing, he should follow in Praveen Kumar's footsteps and lower his base price and increase his chances of getting a bid.

#11 Shaun Tait

Tait has taken over 200 T20 wickets

There have been international careers more curious than that of Shaun Tait. Nicknamed the wild thing for his propensity to combine the sublime with the ridiculous, Tait recently made his comeback into the Australian side after a long hiatus, which many thought meant the end of his career. But even that didn't help his cause as he went unsold in the IPL Auction 2016.

With over 200 T20 wickets, he certainly is a proven performer in this format. But perhaps the teams have caught onto the fact that while he can be a wicket-taking option, he isn't always the most economical. And his pace also is his undoing at times, so he went unsold in the IPL Auction 2016, despite having the same base price as John Hastings, who was picked by the Kolkata Knight Riders.