The eight franchises announced their list of released players on IPL 2021 Player Retention Day on Wedndesday. The likes of Steve Smith, Glenn Maxwell and Mujeeb ur Rahman along with Indian stars like Kedar Jadhav and Piyush Chawla were all released by their respective teams ahead of the IPL 2021 mini-auction which is supposed to take place in the third week of February.
But there might be lot of other players who might not find any takers in the auction after being released by their franchise. The likes of Parthiv Patel, Shane Watson and Lasith Malinga have already announced their retirement from franchise cricket but here are some top names which might go unsold after being released...
1. Nathan Coulter-Nile (Released by Mumbai Indians)
Australia paceman Nathan Coulter-Nile was bought for Rs 8 crore by the five-time champions in the last auction. In 33 IPL matches, he has taken 41 wickets and has a strike rate of 17.
However, Coulter-Nile also has a long history of injuries which have often ruled him out of entire tournaments. In 2018, he was bought by Royal Challengers Bangalore, only to step out due to an injury.
2. Sheldon Cottrell (Released by Kings XI Punjab)
The man with the 'Cottrell salute' might be a characted on the field but didn't reap big rewards for Kings XI Punjab last season. Bought for Rs 8.5 crores, Cotterell managed only six wickets over the course of IPL 2020.
In addition to that, the left-arm paceman from Jamaica leaked runs at 9 an over which made him a liability for KXIP. Since he doesn't have a sparkling T20 record or any great ability with the bat, Cotterell might not be a very attractive pick during the mini-auction.
3. Kedar Jadhav (Released by Chennai Super Kings)
Till a couple of years back, Jadhav was an integral part of the Indian cricket team. A useful finisher with the bat and a part-time off-spinner, Jadhav was a crucial part of CSK set up.
But over the last year, Jadhav's form and fitness have trailed off substantially. He commanded a salary of Rs 7.8 crore but his salary was woefully low -- less than 100 -- throughout the IPL 2020 season. He scored just 62 runs at an average of 20 in the 2020 edition.
His release was along expected lines but at 36 years of age, the Maharashtra batsman might find few takers in the mini-auction.
4. Moeen Ali (Released by Royal Challengers Bangalore)
The all-rounder is an integral part of the England team in all formats of the game. But has failed to live up to that billing when it comes to IPL. In the 2020 season, RCB didn’t play him for most of the season. Finally, ahead of the 2021 auction, he was released. In fact, last year, Moeen Ali played only 3 matches -- picking up one wicket and scoring 12 runs!
It was no surprise that Virat Kohli's side released Ali before the auction. With a modest IPL record till date, Moeen Ali might struggle to attract an impressive bid this season.
5. Jimmy Neesham (Released by Kings XI Punjab)
The New Zealand all-rounder was one of the star performers for his side in their run up to the 2019 ICC 50-over World Cup final. Unfortunately he couldn't replicate that form for Kings XI in IPL.
He played only five matches in the league, where he could manage only 19 runs. He got only two wickets in these matches and had an economy close to 10. Young Kyle Jamieson have risen above Neesham in the pecking order after just a year of international cricket and it will be interesting to note if franchises choose to hedge their bets on this Kiwi all-rounder.
