"All the guys who have not been retained will be glued to the TV" - Rohit Sharma on Team India's plans for IPL auction

Team India’s white-ball captain Rohit Sharma has stated that all players who have not been retained by their respective Indian Premier League (IPL) franchises will be glued to TV screens during the mega auction.

The IPL 2022 auction will be held in Bengaluru over two days on February 12 and 13. While Rohit was retained by the Mumbai Indians (MI) ahead of the auction, many others in the squad for the West Indies series like Shikhar Dhawan, Shreyas Iyer and Shardul Thakur will go under the hammer.

On Friday, a clinical Team India registered a 96-run win over West Indies in Ahmedabad to clinch the three-match ODI series 3-0. At a post-match conference, Rohit was asked about Team India’s plans for the auction. In a light-hearted tone, he replied:

“Everyone and all the guys who have not been retained will be glued to the TV, watching what is happening. I am certainly keeping my phone off.”

A total of 600 players will be up for grabs at the IPL 2022 mega auction in Bengaluru. 10 teams will be taking part in the event, following the addition of two new franchises - the Gujarat Titans and the Lucknow Super Giants.

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“We have ticked a lot of boxes this series” - Rohit Sharma

Reflecting on Team India’s 3-0 whitewash of West Indies, Rohit asserted that they got a lot of things right over the course of the series. Speaking at the post-match presentation ceremony, the 34-year-old said:

"We have ticked a lot of boxes this series. Whatever we wanted to get out of the series, we got."

Interestingly, the new skipper shared similar views to his predecessor Virat Kohli with regards to “outside noise” around the team. He stated:

"The noise will be around as long as we are playing. We know we are playing a high-profile sport in India and people look up to us and watch us. As players and individuals, we know what we need to focus on. The outside noise doesn't bother the dressing room. As long as we can come out and do what we are expected to do, that is very important."

Having clinched the ODI series, the Men in Blue will now face the Windies in a three-match T20I series in Kolkata starting February 16.