Eoin Morgan, England’s limited-overs skipper has opened up about being snubbed at the IPL 2022 mega auction held last month. The veteran batter said he had hoped that a franchise will bid for him in the latter stages of the event, but it was not to be.
Eoin Morgan was one of the many unsold players amongst the 590 that went under the hammer. The left-hander, who debuted in the IPL in 2010, set his base price at 1.5 crores. But the former Kolkata Knight Riders captain found no takers this time around.
Eoin Morgan Thought His Best Chance Was To Be Picked In The 2nd Round Of IPL 2022 Auctions
The 35-year old 2019 World Cup-winning skipper stated he had hoped the franchises would go after him should they need an experienced T20 batter or captain. Eoin Morgan also said he has decided to take a break ahead of England’s crucial assignments later in the year.
“I thought my best chance was to be picked up in the second round once squads had been put together, if someone needed help as a reserve middle order, experienced player, captain, whatever.
“But by the time the first round finished, pretty much every team had boxed that off, so I had no chance. I won’t play any cricket for two months at least, regardless of opportunities that present themselves. I have decided to take time away given the year we have ahead.”
It’s worth noting that the Irishman had a torrid IPL 2021 with the bat. Although the Kolkata Knight Riders made it to the final, the skipper managed only 133 runs in 17 games at 11.08. He failed to hit any half-centuries but slammed an unbeaten 47-run knock in one game. He also failed to impress with his strike rate of 95.68.
He hit 6 sixes and 8 boundaries in the tournament. In the 2021 T20I World Cup, the World Cup-winning captain scored only 40 runs in six matches, striking at 119.30.
Eoin Morgan Admitted He Hasn’t Scored Enough Runs
The World Cup-winning captain admitted that he hasn’t scored as many runs as he would have liked in recent times, but hoped to work on his issues during this break and iron out the problems. The England limited-overs captain said he will take a two-month break to recharge himself for a busy season ahead.
He added: “It’s a fact that I have not scored enough runs. I’d agree. I am viewing it as a challenge that I have been through before and I’m hoping to come out the other side. I will be using this break to recharge, but also to have a little bit of time to work on things that you don’t have time to work on while you are in competition.”
Eoin Morgan, who led England to their inaugural World Cup title in 2019 is likely to stay in the role for the 2022 T20I World Cup in Australia this year. They were highly dominant in last year’s edition before crashing out in the semi-final.
Eoin Morgan who made his IPL debut in 2010, has played in 83 games so far in which he has scored 1,405 runs at an average of 22.66 and strike rate of 122.60, had a horrendous run with the bat in the 2021 season (133 runs in 17 matches at an average of 11.08) despite his team reaching the final. He remained one of the many high-profile unsold players in the auction this year despite setting a base price of Rs 1.5 crore.