At INR 14.2 crore each, Prashant Veer and Kartik Sharma were the most expensive uncapped cricketers at the IPL 2026 auction.
IPL 2008 to 2013: No category for uncapped cricketers
There was no specific category for uncapped cricketers for the first six editions of the IPL. However, among those yet to play international cricket, these were the most expensive cricketers at the auction.
IPL 2008: Brett Geeves (Delhi Daredevils) – US$ 50,000 (among U19 cricketers acquired through drafts and domestic cricketers acquired off-auction, those with Ranji Trophy experience went for the same price)
Read: Ten Australians you forgot played in the IPL
IPL 2009: George Bailey (Chennai Super Kings) – US$ 50,000
IPL 2010: Harmeet Singh Bansal (Deccan Chargers), Harshal Patel (Mumbai Indians), Ashok Menaria (Royal Challengers Bengaluru) – INR 80,000 (the set price for the U19 cricketers at the auction)
IPL 2011: Davy Jacobs (Mumbai Indians) – US$ 190,000
IPL 2012: Dr Daniel Harris (Deccan Chargers) – US$ 70,000 (a medical practitioner since 2005)
IPL 2013: Nathan Coulter-Nile (Mumbai Indians) – US$ 450,000
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IPL 2014: Karn Sharma (Sunrisers Hyderabad) – US$ 375,000
Karn had played for RCB in 2009, but it was in 2014 that his stocks really rose as his auction price zoomed from US$ 30,000 at the 2014 IPL auction following a bidding war with KXIP. His international career started and got over later that year: at four games, it is one of the shortest three-format international careers. Having won the IPL with three different franchises, Karn now plays for MI (and for Railways in domestic cricket).
IPL 2015: Shreyas Iyer (Delhi Daredevils) – INR 2.6 crore
In 2025, Shreyas became the first captain to lead a third franchise to the IPL final. The year before that, he became the first captain to win both the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy and the IPL. Having scored a hundred on Test debut, Shreyas is currently the vice-captain of the Indian ODI side and the sarpanch captain of the Punjab Kings.
IPL 2016: Pawan Negi (Delhi Daredevils) – INR 8.5 crore
Predominantly a left-arm spinner, Negi had earned reputation as a hitter in the previous season when CSK sent him up the order: he struck at 159, hitting a boundary every five balls. The combination made him hot property at the 2016 auction. He played his only T20I between the auction and the 2016 season, and continued to play in the IPL until 2019. He now plays in the Legends Leagues.
IPL 2017: T Natarajan (Kings XI Punjab) – INR 3 crore
Left-arm seamers were hot property in Indian cricket in India since the 2010s, which made Natarajan’s price more or less expected. Soon after his IPL debut, he earned a reputation as a yorker-specialist in the league, and has had a reasonable career so far. His three-format international career lasted only four months and seven games, but he is still active for Tamil Nadu and the Delhi Capitals.
IPL 2018: Krunal Pandya (Mumbai Indians) – INR 8.8 crore
Krunal was already a mainstay for MI when they used the right-to-match card to acquire him at the 2018 auction. The only cricketer to win the Player of the Match award in two IPL finals (for MI in 2017 and for RCB in 2025), he played five ODIs and 19 T20Is, and is part of the RCB camp.
IPL 2019: Varun Chakravarthy (Kings XI Punjab) – INR 8.4 crore
IPL 2020: Varun Chakravarthy (Kolkata Knight Riders) – INR 4 crore
In 2019, Varun became the first uncapped cricketer to become the most expensive cricketer at an IPL auction (albeit jointly with Jayden Unadkat). He recovered well after starting his IPL career with a 25-run over to finish with 3-0-35-1, but did not play again that season. It was at KKR that he found a home next season, after becoming the most expensive uncapped cricketer at the second consecutive IPL auction. A winner of the 2025 Champions Trophy medal, he is now the top-ranked T20I bowler in the world.
IPL 2021: Krishnappa Gowtham (Punjab Kings) – INR 9.25 crore
Like many others on this list, Gowtham had been playing in the IPL for a few seasons before benefitting from a bona-fide bidding war. An IPL strike rate of 167 and an economy of 8.24 (until 2024) should probably have earned him more than 36 caps, but he never got sustained opportunities. He played an ODI in 2021, and last featured at the 2024 Maharaja Trophy.
IPL 2022: Avesh Khan (Lucknow Super Giants) – INR 10 crore
An excellent outing in 2021 (24 wickets, economy 7.37) resulted in Avesh becoming the first uncapped cricketer to hit the 10-crore mark at an IPL auction. He snared 18 wickets in 2022 and 19 in 2024 (for RR), and is currently part of the LSG squad. He has also played eight ODIs and 25 T20Is, and won the gold medal at men’s cricket at the 2023 Hangzhou Asian Games.
IPL 2023: Shivam Mavi (Gujarat Titans) – INR 6 crore
Having won the U19 World Cup for India in 2018, Mavi had been immediately picked up by KKR. Despite his potential – he can supplement fast bowling with reasonable batting – injuries hampered Mavi’s career significantly. Still only 27, he continues to play for Uttar Pradesh, and will represent SRH in the 2026 IPL.
IPL 2024: Sameer Rizvi (Chennai Super Kings) – INR 8.4 crore
Rizvi had already earned the “right-handed Raina” tag when CSK went berserk over him at the 2024 auction. He responded by hitting a six off the first and fourth balls he faced in his IPL career, off Rashid Khan – but his CSK career fizzled out after that. Just past his 22nd birthday, he now plays for Madhya Pradesh in domestic cricket and for the Delhi Capitals in the IPL.
IPL 2025: Rasikh Salam Dar (Royal Challengers Bengaluru) – INR 6 crore
Rasikh was not even 18 when he made his IPL debut in 2019, but was banned for two years immediately after that edition when he was accuse of fudging his age. However, he did return to mainstream cricket, and was even part of RCB’s IPL-winning squad in 2025. He has also switched from Jammu & Kashmir to Baroda in domestic cricket.
IPL 2026: Prashant Veer (Chennai Super Kings), Kartik Sharma (Chennai Super Kings) – INR 14.2 crore
Left-arm spin-bowling all-rounder Veer plays for Uttar Pradesh, and rose to limelight with prolific hitting in the UPT20. Kartik plays for Rajasthan, strikes at 163 in T20 cricket, has three hundreds in eight first-class games, and keeps wicket.
