IPL auction is secondary for me, reveals Shai Hope

West Indies opener Shai Hope, on the eve of the second ODI of the three-match series, said he is more focused on the ongoing series while accepting that some of his teammates will be having an eye on the IPL auction to be held on Thursday. When asked about whether IPL auction is on his mind or not, Hope sounded dismissive and termed it as “secondary”.

"I am sure it would be but I am sure that's secondary. We came here to play a series against India so whatever comes secondary is secondary. I am sure some of the guys will be looking forward to the auction but we have an India series to play and that's the main thing right now," Hope said.

Hope was part of a 218-run partnership with Shimron Hetmyer, who was blistering from the other end. Hetmyer scored a 106-ball 139 while Hope was on the slower side with a strike rate below 70. Hope remained not out on 102 to seal the deal for Windies in Chennai. He revealed that he did not get intimidated by Hetmyer’s devastation and kept on playing is own game of anchoring the innings.

"I think it's difficult for me when you see someone at the other end going so easy. You just want to join the party but I have to keep reminding myself that I can't let the opposition make inroads. If one man is attacking at the other end, it's not necessary to have a go if the run rate is under control. Key is to be aware of what the team needs."

The wicket-keeper batsman is placed third on the ODI run-getters’ in 2019 list with 1225 runs behind Virat Kohli(1292) and Rohit Sharma(1268). He is hopeful of topping the chart given both the Indian batters do not score heavily in the series.

"Thanks for heads up (on numbers). Obviously, I have to ask the bowlers to do some damage as well. As a batsman, you want to contribute as much as possible and if it helps the team win even more satisfying. Hopefully, we can remove them at the top and then get some big runs and get to the top of that run-getters’ list," he smilingly replied.