Disappointed by IPL rejection: Joe Root

England batsman Joe Root has spoken about the disappointment at going unsold during the recent IPL auction.

Root was hoping to enter in the Indian Premier League for the first time, he was listed as a marquee player but none of the franchises picked him.

“I was disappointed,” said Root.

“I wanted to go and play more T20 cricket, my motive was not to earn more money, ” he added.

He believed that he couldn’t fit in any of the IPL teams as the franchises have a clear idea of the way they want to build their team.

Remained Unsold despite being listed as Marquee Player:

Joe Root had announced that he would miss the Trans-Tasman T20 tri-series as England head coach, Trevor Bayliss advised him to rest and secure an IPL deal. But the move backfired and he was one of the two marquee players to go unsold in the IPL, Hashim Amla being the other one.

Given the hectic schedule of England cricket for the rest of the year, Root would now get a decent rest after the tour of New Zealand finishes in early April.

Root lamented that getting rejected in the IPL auction was quite disappointed, but it was understandable.

Read: Absolute shocker! TWO 100s, 420 runs at SR of 146 in IPL 2017 but no buyer?

IPL Rejection Understandable:

In an interview,  Root asserted ahead of the fourth ODI between New  Zealand and England, “I don’t get the required exposure to the T20 cricket and we have a World T20 in a couple of years. I thought IPL would be a great opportunity to get some good experience in a fantastic tournament.”

Joe Root was a key player in England’s journey to the final of the last World T20 in India in 2016. He amassed 249 runs at a strike rate of over 146 and was the third best player of the tournament.

Since then Root has only played five T20s but England would probably select him during the upcoming home summer. England would be playing against Australia in a one-off T20I in June which is followed by a three-match series against India.

Image Source: AFP