Ravichandran Ashwin opened up on being unsold at the 2026 International League T20 Auction, where the veteran wicket-taker ended up going unsold, despite being one of the staple names. The 39-year-old retired from international and the Indian Premier League (IPL) this year and shared what led to him being passed on and clarified the position he took in the auction.
A two-time IPL champion, Ashwin was the only player who registered at a base price of $120,000 (₹1.06 crore); given his stature and experience, everyone felt he would be picked up by a team, not in the first round, but definitely in the next accelerated auction. Some teams had enough money left; it was only a matter of time before his name came back in the pool.
But to everyone's surprise, Ashwin's name did not come back in the list of the 44 players who were called back in the next round. Providing context, the off-spinner stated that he had actually withdrawn after going unsold for the first time.
“I wasn’t willing to lower my base price,” Ashwin told Cricbuzz. “That was the minimum value I placed on myself. I’m happy not to play at this stage of my career if that value isn’t met. A few days before the auction, I was close to pulling out because of my Big Bash League deal with Sydney Thunder, but since I had already committed to entering the ILT20 auction, I honoured my word. Once I went unsold in the first round, I decided not to return for the accelerated process.”
Ashwin highlighted that his call was about self-respect and clarity at the end of his career. With his BBL contract confirmed, the legendary Indian off-spinner is now set to take his trade to Australia, even as his ILT20 journey ended before it started.
