The Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 mini auction has taken place, and it has already left its mark on the cricketing world by the enormous payment done by all ten franchises preparing their Twenty-Twenty teams. Some major players, who were anticipated to be auctioned for a high price, deservedly got what they got; meanwhile, a number of star players, who had been resurgent in the past, did not get any offer in the auction.
Here, we discuss 5 such prominent players whose names were in the auction list but ultimately remained unsold.
1) Devon Conway
The opener from New Zealand, Devon Conway, who was once an undisputed starter for the Chennai Super Kings, was let go by the team and was not able to attract even a single bid in the IPL mini auction. The player went unsold for the third time, having played in the 2023 season with CSK where he was a key player and scored 672 runs, thus helping the team win the title.
But the story changed in the 2025 season when the batsman only managed to collect 156 runs at a strike rate of 131, and thus, the franchises showed no interest and he was overlooked in the auction.
2) Jake Fraser-McGurk
The Australian opener was full of power and talent and he set the IPL on fire in 2024 season when he played the opening batter for the Delhi Capitals and scored 330 runs in 9 matches with a strike rate of 234 which was his imperial best. However, disaster struck the following season, and the numbers reflect the story.
After enjoying the highs in 2024, JFM faced a downfall as the explosive batter was able to score only 55 runs in 2025 and he had a strike rate of only 105. The franchise released him as a result. He had been an IPL performer of worth in the past, but no paddle was raised when Fraser-McGurk’s name came up in the IPL mini auction.
3) Jonny Bairstow
Last season, Jonny Bairstow was recruited as a last-minute replacement player in the Mumbai Indians team, and he almost made an enormous impact on the former IPL winner’s
He has just performed with MI two times and was among the leading players with excellent strike rate, however, English star no one was interested in and he got unsold in the mini auction. He proved his worth with SRH and PBKS, but the teams which required a reliable wicketkeeper just passed over him.
4) Jamie Smith
The coming of age England player, Jamie Smith, was believed to find a buyer in the IPL mini-auction, considering the need for a top-class keeper by many franchises, but the twist really surprised everyone when no one made a move for him. It was a shock because Smith had been performing well for England in the T20 format.
One of the main reasons why Smith may have remained unsold was his poor Test form in Australia just before the auction that severely curtailed his chances.
5) Daryl Mitchell
Daryl Mitchell is one of the most popular and talked-about international cricketers at the moment, as he has been performing very well lately and was thus expected to be auctioned at a high price.
A team like the Gujarat Titans was looking for a dependable number 4, but the New Zealand batter was completely overlooked. One of the reasons behind this was that he had a pretty poor IPL season with the Chennai Super Kings and the teams could not see beyond his past performances in IPL.
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