Published: Jan 25, 2018, 05:52 PM (IST)
Edited: Jan 25, 2018, 05:52 PM (IST)
India are all set to take on Bangladesh in the quarter finals of the ICC Under-19 on January 26. Whereas, the much awaited IPL auctions are scheduled on January 27 and 28 which may prove as an distraction for the youngsters.
Prithvi Shaw, Shubman Gill, Himanshu Rana, Abhishek Sharma, Riyan Parag, Kamlesh Nagarkoti, Shivam Mavi, Arshdeep Singh and Harvik Desai are the players available for auction which will be held at Bengaluru.
While speaking to ESPNcricinfo Coach, Rahul Dravid suggested players to focus on long terms goals and not get distracted.
“There’s no point hiding from the fact that it is there. It is around the corner,” said Dravid. “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.”
Dravid believes that World Cup is the bigger opportunity for players than the auction as it doesn’t take place every year. IPL auction is held every year and according to Dravid it is not long term.
“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 semi-final. That doesn’t come very often,” he concluded.
