Dravid: IPL auction will come every year, not World Cup

Captain Prithvi Shaw, Shubman Gill, Himanshu Rana, Abhishek Sharma, Riyan Parag, Kamlesh Nagarkoti, Shivam Mavi, Arshdeep Singh and Harvik Desai are the squad members who will be in the auction.

Rahul Dravid expects the India U19 boys to have full focus ahead of the quarter-final clash against Bangladesh in the 2018 ICC U19 World Cup. (File Photo)

India U19 coach Rahul Dravid expects his boys to have full focus on their ongoing campaign in the ICC U19 World Cup and not get distracted by the IPL auction this weekend. The three-time champions India will play its quarter-final against Bangladesh on Friday.

Captain Prithvi Shaw, Shubman Gill, Himanshu Rana, Abhishek Sharma, Riyan Parag, Kamlesh Nagarkoti, Shivam Mavi, Arshdeep Singh and Harvik Desai are the squad members who will be in the auction, to be held on Saturday and Sunday in Bengaluru.

“There’s no point hiding from the fact that it is there. It is around the corner,” Dravid was quoted as saying by ’ESPNCricinfo’ .

“There’s no point living in the bubble and pretending it doesn’t exist. We do discuss it. We’ve spoken about what their focus should be and what their long-term goals are as compared to their short-term goals,” said the former India captain. Dravid also said that the IPL auction will come every year but not everyday one gets a chance to play the World Cup.

“The auction is not something the boys can control. One or two auctions won’t really have a long-term impact on their careers. There is an auction every year, but not every year will they have an opportunity to play for India in possibly a World Cup semifinal. That doesn’t come very often.”