India Premier League's (IPL) mega auction 2022 made many players overnight millionaires and some are still in the hangover of the windfall they saw ahead of the glitzy league's upcoming season. The English speedster Mark Wood is one of them who was roped in by the new franchise Lucknow Super Giants for Rs 7.50 crore in the IPL auction.
Exhilarated to find takers at the IPL auction, Mark Wood said receiving a contract was similar to playing a computer game like 'Football Manager' – "almost not real".
"As soon as the final amount was confirmed Sarah asked what it was in pounds – I might have to freeze all our accounts so it doesn't disappear," Wood told The Guardian.
"But we're delighted. It’s a weird experience. It feels like a computer game – almost not real, like transfers on Football Manager – but it’s also very real when you get signed," he further added.
The 32-year-old, who had withdrawn from last year's auction to spend more time with his family, recalled the scene in his house during the auction.
"We were about to go away for the weekend for a wedding anniversary I missed in Australia but the IPL auctioneer falling ill on stage paused everything and delayed us setting off,” Wood said.
Auctioneer Hugh Edmeades had collapsed inside the auction room through the first day due to low blood pressure.
“Harry was meant to sleep in the car but just conked out on the sofa before my name came up. I remember Sarah shouting – but also whispering – ‘Get back here now,’ as I was putting some dishes in the sink.
"After a quiet start to the bidding, suddenly it moved fast and the numbers went up," he said.
Veteran pacers James Anderson and Stuart Broad were dropped from the English side for three-Test series against West Indies next month and Wood said he was "shocked" to learn about the duo's omission.
“I didn’t see it coming at all. It will be weird those two not being on tour; a first for me. Even when injured they normally stay in the group.
“But I know they’ll be there on text if I need advice. And if they see something, they’d message too. They’re England fans, I know they’ve been there a long time but they still just want England to win and I’m 100% sure they’ll be back,” he added.
He also spoke about former head coach Chris Silverwood's departure from the team in the wake of the side's embarrassing Ashes series defeat.
“It’s sad. Spoons was so supportive of me. I came on leaps and bounds since he first came on board as bowling coach [in 2018].
"He always made my work fun and never put pressure on me. You never want anyone to lose their job and it's so hard as a player when management cop it for your failures," Wood said.
Lucknow Super Giants's sold players in IPL mega auction:
Quinton de Kock – Rs 6.75 Crore
Manish Pandey – Rs 4.60 Crore
Jason Holder – Rs 8.75 Crore
Deepak Hooda – Rs 5.75 Crore
Krunal Pandya – Rs 8.25 Crore
Mark Wood – Rs 7.50 Crore
Avesh Khan – Rs 10 Crore
Ankit Rajpoot – Rs 50 Lakh
K Gowtham - Rs 90 lakh
Dushmantha Chameera- Rs 2 crore
Shahbaz Nadeem- Rs 50 lakh
Manan Vohra- Rs 20 lakh
Mohsin Khan- Rs 20 lakh
Ayush Badoni- Rs 20 lakh
Kyle Mayers- Rs 50 lakh
Karan Sharma- Rs 20 lakh
Evin Lewis- Rs 2 crore
Mayank Yadav- Rs 20 lakh
