Melbourne:Australian all-rounder hasn’t registered for the upcoming 2026 auction and seems to have played his last in the cash-rich league. As per an ESPNCricinfo report, Maxwell wasn’t one of the names on the list of 1,355 players headlined by Cameron Green, Venkatesh Iyer, Ravi Bishnoi, Liam Livingstone and Jamie Smith, among others and the 37-year-old confirmed the same on his Instagram with a post, saying that it was a big call but taken with a lot of gratitude to the IPL, the way it shaped his career and to all the players and coaches he was associated with in the last 13 years.
"I've made the decision not to enter my name in the auction this year after numerous memorable IPL seasons. Maxwell posted on Instagram, "It's a big decision, and one made with a lot of gratitude for everything this league has given me."
"The IPL has helped shape me as a cricketer and as a person. I’ve been lucky to play with world-class teammates, represent incredible franchises, and perform in front of fans whose passion is unmatched. The memories, the challenges, and the energy of India will stay with me forever. Thank you for all your support over the years. Hopefully see you soon,” Maxwell added.
During his 141-match IPL career, Maxwell played for four different teams and amassed 2,819 runs with the bat and 41 wickets with the ball. Maxwell had three of his most successful seasons in the IPL, playing for the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) in 2021, 2022 and 2023, before recording his worst season in 2024 and being released.
Maxwell's homecoming for the Punjab Kings wasn't the greatest as he scored 48 runs in six innings in seven matches before his campaign was cut short due to an injury.After suffering an injury that prevented him from playing the entire season for the Punjab Kings, Maxwell was replaced in the squad by fellow Australian all-rounder Mitch Owen, who was ultimately retained by the previous season's finalists. Maxwell was selected by the Punjab Kings at last year's mega auction for INR 4.2 crore.
Maxwell was expected to be one of the in-demand players at the next auction despite his meagre returns in the last couple of seasons in the IPL and hence, him not entering the pool was definitely a surprise. The all-rounder was the fourth star player to withdraw from the forthcoming IPL auction. Two of them, and , will be playing in the 11th edition of the Pakistan Super League (PSL), set to run simultaneously with the IPL, while Andre Russell, another potential big buy, retired from the tournament after being appointed as the 'Power Coach' for the Kolkata Knight Riders.
A few all-rounders, including Cameron Green, Liam Livingstone, Delano Potgieter, Sikandar Raza, and others, may see their prices rise even further as a result of Maxwell's exclusion from the auction.
The highest base price will only be registered by two Indians.Out of 45 Indian players, only two have registered for the IPL 2026 auction at the highest base price of INR 2 crore: Venkatesh Iyer and Ravi Bishnoi. After being purchased for INR 23.75 crore at the mega auction, Iyer was freed by the Knight Riders. Being a top-order, left-handed, proven Indian batter in the IPL, Iyer is likely to fetch a double-digit contract once again and with KKR entering the auction with the biggest purse, the tall Madhya Pradesh cricketer might go back to his previous franchise.
In contrast, Bishnoi's contributions to the Lucknow Super Giants have been declining over the past few years. After being retained for INR 11 crore, he was let go because he didn't contribute much to the bowling. Rajasthan Royals, Sunrisers Hyderabad and Chennai Super Kings will be in the market for someone like Bishnoi, who has international experience and is probably the most high-profile spinner at the auction among domestic options.