Timing of IPL auction 'not ideal' for Aussies

Having the IPL auction on at the same time as The West Test is "not ideal" but Australian players won't let the bling bling distract them. That's the opinion of outgoing Cricket Australia chief executive Nick Hockley, who also voiced his support of Perth kicking off the Test summer for years to come. The two-day IPL auction will begin in Saudi Arabia on Sunday evening (AEDT), coinciding with the end of day three of the first Test between Australia and India at Optus Stadium. A total of 37 Australians have thrown their hat into the ring for the lucrative mega auction, including Test stars Josh Hazlewood, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, Alex Carey and Mitch Marsh. Indian stars such as KL Rahul, Ravi Ashwin and Rishabh Pant are also up for grabs. Mega auctions are only held every three or four years in the IPL. Franchises are only able to retain a certain number of their players leading into a mega auction, meaning it's a chance to launch huge rebuilds. Test skipper Pat Cummins and Travis Head are the only two Australians locked in to their previous franchises, with Sunrisers Hyderabad opting to keep the duo. Australia's assistant coach Daniel Vettori, who is the head coach of Sunrisers, left the Test camp early so he could be in Saudi Arabia for the auction. Cummins dismissed any notion that Vettori's absence for the first Test in Perth was a distraction for the squad. But the timing of the auction - right smack bang in the middle of a Test - has raised eyebrows. It's also impacted on the broadcast of the Test, with IPL coaches Justin Langer and Ricky Ponting leaving their commentary posts after day one so they could fly to the auction. When asked if the timing of the auction was simply rude, Hockley diplomatically replied: "I think it's not ideal. "I think if you spoke to our broadcast partners who have commentators who are also IPL coaches, they would also say it's not ideal. "But that's out of our hands. "I know certainly our players here will be fully focused here, and it will be something to think and talk about after the Test match." A record crowd of 31,302 attended day one on Friday. It marked the biggest single-day attendance for a Test match in Perth, beating the 22,178 that attended day two of the Ashes Test against England in 2017/18 at the WACA Ground. Perth has been locked in to host the first Test of the summer for three years - India this year, England next summer, and New Zealand in 2026. Hockley hopes that deal will be extended out. "It's great to see Perth's embraced it," Hockley told SEN. "Now that we know that for at least the next three years that The West Test will be the first Test of the summer, it really will become very much a destination Test match, much like the Boxing Day Test, the Pink Test and so on." Hockley also liked the idea of having an ODI match at the MCG on the day before the Melbourne Cup public holiday.