The ILT20 2026 auction – the first in the tournament’s history – took place today (October 1) for the upcoming fourth edition. While there were some interesting picks by the six franchises (Desert Vipers, MI Emirates, Sharjah Warriorz, Gulf Giants, Abu Dhabi Knight Riders and Dubai Captials), there were also a few big names who failed to find any suitor.
In this article, we take a look at four such marquee players who went unsold at the event in Dubai.
The first and the biggest name on the list is former India and Chennai Super Kings (CSK) all-rounder Ravichandran Ashwin. The 39-year-old, who retired from the IPL earlier this year, entered his first-ever auction outside of India.
With the higest-ever base price for a player in the tournament’s history at USD 120,00, Ashwin was the most anticipated name to go under the hammer. However, when his name was announced, no franchise showed interest in him. While it was expected that his name might appear in the later accelerated rounds of the auction after teams submit their preferred list of players from the ones who had gone unsold initially, Ashwin’s name did not turn up which clearly indicates a lack of interest in acquiring the Indian star.
Veteran English pacer James Anderson was another big name in the ILT2026 auction who went unsold. He might have called it quits in his international career but Anderson is still raring to go in franchise cricket.
However, Anderson too, despite his experience and talent, could not find a buyer. He had played the Vitality Blast 2025 and The Hundred 2025 for Lancashire and Manchester Originals respectively earlier this year but was out of favour in today’s auction. The 43-year-old previously also went unsold at the SA20 2026 auction earlier this month.
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Former Pakistan speedster Mohammd Amir is another surprising exclusion since he is a household name in ILT20, having played two of the three season so far. He was with Desert Vipers in the past two editions and had successful campaigns finishing in the top 10 wicket-takers list both times – 12 wickets in nine matches (in 2023/24) and 14 wickets in 11 games (in 2024/25).
Furthermore, the 33-year-old has been in terrific form in 2025. He picked up 11 scalps in seven games in CPL 2025 while he emerged as the top wicket-taker for Essex in Vitality Blast 2025 with 20 wickets in 14 games at an average of 20.90.
England opener Jason Roy will be another big name absent from the next season of ILT20. The 35-year-old is an extremely skillful opener who can change gears and bat through different phases of the innings. However, given his age and a high base price of USD 80,000, it seems that the franchises decided against signing him this time around.
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