Registering Name For IPL Auction is a Big Deal for Bhutan: Mikyo Dorji

Bhutan all-rounder Mikyo Dorji claims that just registering his name for the auction of Indian Premier League 2022 is a big deal for his country. Dorji is the first player from Bhutan to register his name for the IPL Auction ceremony. Cricket is still one of the growing sports in Bhutan as archery is the national sport of the country and football is very popular amongst the youth. Dorji is working hard to put his country’s name on cricket’s global map.

Dorji said his ultimate dream is to play in the IPL but he admitted that there are very slight chances of him getting shortlisted for the next round of IPL auction.

“Playing in the IPL is an ultimate dream for me. People saw that there was one player in the auction list from Bhutan and my friends started calling me. But they don’t know (laughs) that this is just the initial round, and the names are going to be shortlisted further. If I am honest to myself, my name will not be there in the main list after it is trimmed. Anyways, just registering is a big deal for Bhutan,” Dorji told the New Indian Express.

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Dorji is also the first player from Bhutan to play in a franchise-based league outside his country. He played in the Everest Premier League for Lalitpur Patriots. However, he said he could have developed more if his country played regular international matches.

“For players like me, more than anything, I missed international cricket, where I could have learned further and developed,” said Dorji.

The 22-year-old further gave an example of how Chencho Gyelsthen’s participation in India’s football league – ISL, helped people of Bhutan to realise how a person can make a career out of the sport. He feels the same thing will happen with cricket players if one will get picked in IPL.

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“In the future, and I hope so, if any franchise picks a player from Bhutan, it will help a great deal here. For example, Bhutan footballer Chencho Gyeltshen plays in the Indian Super League, it has helped a lot. People and parents alike have started to realise that one can make good money and career out of such sports too. The same thing can happen in cricket too if a player from Bhutan is in the IPL,” added Dorji.

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