Legendary India cricketer Ravichandran Ashwin has shared his views after not finding any bidders at the auction of the International League T20 (ILT20). The 39-year-old was the player with the highest base price in the auction at INR 1.06 crore and though it was expected that multiple franchises would go after him, eventually no one showed any interest in signing him. Ashwin defended his massive base price and stated that he isn't keen on playing if his value isn't met at this tage of his career.
"That's the price I wanted as a bare minimum, and I'm happy not to play at this stage of my career if my value isn't met," Ashwin told Cricbuzz.
Ashwin also revealed that he was about pull out from the auction just a few days before as he had already signed a deal with Big Bash League side Sydney Thunder. However, he eventually didn't do so as he had already committed to the ILT20 that he will enter the auction.
"I was about to pull out a few days before the auction because of the Thunder deal, but since I had already committed to the ILT20 that I would enter the auction, I honoured my word. However, I did not agree to lowering my base price," Ashwin stated.
Will Ashwin feature in entire season of BBL?
Meanwhile, Ashwin will be seen in action in the BBL next season as he has given committment to the Sydney Thunder for the full campaign. "I have signed up with Sydney Thunder for the entire season," he said. With this, he will become the first Indian in history to feature in the Australia-based T20 League. He will be playing under the captaincy of David Warner.
Notably, Thunder has won the BBL title once in their history and had finished third last season. It remains to be seen if Ashwin will be able to help in taking the side to only their second triumph in the tournament.