Former West Indies captain Chris Gayle and batting legend Brian Lara failed to attract bidders in the Indian Premier League (IPL) in the players’ recent auction held in Bangalore for the fourth edition of the competition.
They will not feature in this year’s IPL, which will be staged from April 8 to May 22.
West Indies all rounder Dwayne Bravo was more fortunate as his contract was taken up by reigning champions Chennai Super Kings for US$200,000.
Recovering West Indies fast bowler Jerome Taylor was bought by an Indian Premier League for a base price of US $100,000.
The other West Indian player to feature in this year’s IPL is Kieron Pollard, who was retained by the Mumbai Indians for US$300,000.
Gayle entered the auction with a reserve price of US $400,000, but observers indicated that his likely unavailability for the full duration of the IPL may have considerably lowered interest in him.
Gayle is likely to be part of the West Indies team for their home series against Pakistan, which will be contested around the same time as the IPL between April 15 and May 24.
Lara, 41 was the oldest player in the IPL auction and reports indicate that celebrity auctioneer Richard Madley did not waste much time to blank him in the “unsold” basket.
Lara made a return to the competitive game last October, three years after his retirement, when he played in Zimbabwe’s national Twenty 20 league.
He was eager to play in the IPL and was also working on his fitness. He entered the auction at a base price of US$400,000 at which many of the 10 franchises seemed to have scoffed.
