The IPL 2023 is closing on its end with the Gujarat Titans and Chennai Super Kings reaching the final. The 16th edition of the IPL tournament was the highest-scoring IPL season of all time, with plenty of 200+ totals being racked up and a few of them even being chased down.
The tournament has seen some exceptional performances from those players who were picked up at low prices and at high prices. Some of the expensive signings, though, didn’t deliver as to expectations and missed a few games.
Here are 5 players who were bought for 10 crore or more in IPL 2023 auction, but didn’t play all the matches:
Ben Stokes
The England Test captain, Ben Stokes, was roped in by CSK for a whopping INR 16.25 crore in the Indian Premier League 2023 auction. However, Stokes only played a couple of matches at the start of the tournament before being sidelined due to injury. When he was fit, Stokes couldn’t get into the side because Conway, Moeen Ali, Pathirana, and Theekshana had cemented their places.
In 2 knocks for CSK this season, Stokes scored 15 runs and bowled 1 over for 18 runs, and he left ahead of the playoffs to prepare for the Ashes.
Lockie Ferguson
New Zealand fast bowler Lockie Ferguson was traded in from Gujarat Titans by KKR for INR 10 crore to bolster KKR’s pace attack. However, Ferguson failed to make an impact early on: he took just 1 wicket in 3 matches while leaking at more than 12 runs an over, and was dropped from the XI, not to be picked again. In all likelihood, given his price, injury issues, and returns this season, Ferguson will be released by KKR.
Wanindu Hasaranga
Hasaranga was retained by RCB for his price of INR 10.75 crore, for which he was bought for in IPL 2022 auction. Hasarangs missed the initial few matches of the season due to Sri Lanka’s matches in New Zealand. He wasn’t at his best this season, picking up 9 wickets in 8 matches at an economy of 8.89. Hasaranga missed the last few matches due to injury.
Avesh Khan
The Lucknow Super Giants had splurged a big amount of INR 10 crore on Avesh Khan in IPL 2022 mega-auction. But this season, Avesh failed to deliver the goods: in 9 games, Avesh snapped up 8 wickets at an expensive economy of 9.75.
Liam Livingstone
Because of recovering from an injury, Liam Livingstone arrived late in the Indian Premier League 2023. Retained at a heavy price of INR 11.5 crore, Livingstone played 9 matches for Punjab Kings this season, scoring 279 runs at a strike rate of 163.
