For the second year in a row, Sarfaraz Khan has failed to attract an Indian Premier League (IPL) franchise. In the last 2 weeks, the 28-year-old has scored his maiden T20 hundred and two fifties (18-ball and 15-ball) in the 2025-26 Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy (SMAT) for Mumbai.
Sarfaraz Khan goes unsold at IPL 2026 auction
But this wasn’t enough. Sarfaraz went under the hammer in the first/marquee set of the IPL 2026 auction, and no franchises showed any interest in the batter despite his base price being just INR 75 lakh.
Sarfaraz wasn’t the only marquee player that went unsold either. Prithvi Shaw, Jake Fraser-McGurk and Devon Conway didn’t find any suitors either.
SMAT performance ignored
Earlier today, in the last Super League round of SMAT, Sarfaraz had struck a 15-ball fifty against Rajasthan. It wasn’t just the batter’s but also Mumbai’s fastest-ever fifty.
Chasing a mammoth 2017, Mumbai had lost Yashasvi Jaiswal early, and Sarfaraz stood up when it mattered the most. Mumbai needed to win the match if they wanted to qualify for the SMAT final, and Sarfaraz blew Rajasthan apart with his 73-run knock from just 22 balls.
Unluckily for Sarfaraz, this wasn’t enough for IPL franchises.
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