O'Brien eyes IPL chance
All-rounder hoping to help raise the profile of Irish cricket
Last Updated: February 1, 2012 5:08pm
Kevin O'Brien: set a new record for the quickest hundred in English cricket
Ireland's Kevin O'Brien is hoping to earn an Indian Premier League contract in Saturday's franchise auction.
The all-rounder has a base price of just 50,000 US Dollars despite hitting the fastest World Cup century in history in his country's shock win over England, needing just 50 balls to reach three figures in Bangalore.
"Kochi wanted me last year after the World Cup but I wasn't on the original list so I couldn't sign which was a shame. It would be fantastic to be signed this year."
Kevin O'Brien Quotes of the week
He then showed that wasn't a one-off by needing just 44 deliveries to score a century for Gloucestershire last summer, setting a new record for the quickest hundred in English cricket.
O'Brien hopes those two stunning knocks will be enough to convince an IPL franchise to snap him up for the fifth season of the twenty20 tournament.
"The IPL is a great tournament, the biggest in the world in my opinion given the crowds and media coverage, and it's so exciting to be in with a chance of being there," he said.
"The auction is pretty close now and it would be fantastic to get picked up.
"The eight weeks I spent out there at the World Cup was amazing, I loved every minute.
"Obviously the hundred against England meant my profile increased and then I went to Gloucestershire and scored the fastest century in England last season too. Those two innings stand out and hopefully I'll have some support at the auction.
"Kochi wanted me last year after the World Cup but I wasn't on the original list so I couldn't sign which was a shame. It would be fantastic to be signed this year."
Test hopes
O'Brien, whose brother Niall is also involved in the auction, hopes appearing in the IPL would further boost Cricket Ireland's hopes of gaining Test status.
"Cricket Ireland have made a big, bold statement and that represents the progress we have made as players," he said.
"The stepping stones are in place to achieve that goal and it's all very positive.
"An IPL deal would be huge for me or Niall on a personal level but also in terms of what we can achieve for Irish cricket.
"If we could be out there for 6-8 weeks it would have people watching the matches, following the results and getting interested. What we can bring to the IPL is to raise the profile in Ireland and that can only be a positive thing because it can only improve and make the game bigger."
