England batsman Jason Roy has decided to pulled out of the upcoming edition of the Indian Premier League citing challenges of staying in a bubble. Gujarat Titans bagged him in the mega auction with his base price of INR 2cr. Roy played his last year’s season from the Sunrises Hyderabad franchise.
According to a report in ‘ESPNcricinfo’, Jason Roy informed the franchise of his decision last week. The Titans are yet to finalise a replacement. However, the England cricketer’s pull-out from the IPL would hurt the franchise as he was in sublime form in the PSL, where, despite playing just six games for the Gladiators, he still managed to score 303 runs at an average of 50.50 and a strike rate of 170.22.
This is the second time Roy has decided not to take part in the IPL after finding a team at the auction. In 2020, Delhi Capitals picked up Roy for his then base price of Rs 1.5 crore but he opted out for personal reasons. The 31-year-old cricketer last season had represented Sunrisers Hyderabad and dished out a few decent performances.
Meanwhile, the 2022 edition of the IPL is slated to kick off on 26th March 2022. The opening match of the tournament will see the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) locking horns with two-time IPL winners Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR). The tournament will conclude on 29th May 2022. With 10 teams, more matches and an exclusive 2-month window for the event, while it won’t be surprising to see a few more withdrawals for mental health and bio-bubble fatigue reasons