English bowler Mark Wood opts out of IPL auction

English pacer Mark Wood has withdrawn his name from the auction list. The news came to light for the franchises at the briefing in Chennai ahead of the auction. According to a report in Cricbuzz, it is believed that Wood has opted out of the auction because he wants to spend time with his family. Wood was rested by England for the first two Tests against India at Chennai.

The Test series will be followed by five T20Is and three ODIs. Wood is a part of the T20I squad and is likely to be named in the ODI squad too. England’s tour of India will end on March 28 and Wood has decided to spend time with his family after the series instead of playing in IPL.

Wood had put himself forward at the highest base price (2 crore/£200,000) ahead of the auction, and is understood to have attracted some interest from franchises, but opted to withdraw his name in advance rather than pulling out after selection.

Wood’s withdrawal from the IPL shines an unfavourable light on England’s central contracts system. Despite being named in squads for England’s last five Test series and a long run of involvement in their limited-overs set-up, Wood only holds a white-ball central contract, meaning that he earns significantly less than Test specialists on red-ball deals – not least with match fees and bonuses reportedly cut during the pandemic.