"It was just about being at home and getting time to work on my game" - Kyle Jamieson on why he opted to not be a part of the mega auction

New Zealand all-rounder Kyle Jamieson is one of the biggest absentees on the player list at the mega auction ahead of IPL 2022. The former Royal Challengers Bangalore player was not retained by the franchise following the end of the previous edition.

The 27-year-old has cemented his place in the Test setup, but is still finding his groove in limited-overs formats for the national team. He cited the challenges associated with bio-bubbles, rigid scheduling and an opportunity to hone his skills as reasons behind his absence from IPL.

Speaking during a media interaction on the eve of Auckland's Plunket Shield opener against the Northern Districts, Jamieson said:

"Yeah, look, there were a couple of things for me. Firstly, after the last 12 months, it's had its challenges with MIQs (managed isolation and quarantine) and bubbles and spending a fair amount of time in that sort of set-up. It was important for me, when I look at the schedule coming up over the next 12 months to try and find six weeks or eight weeks where I can spend some time at home."

The all-rounder continued:

"The second thing for me was, reflecting over the last 12-24 months and understanding that I'm very young in my [international] career and only two years in, that I wanted to have time to work on my game."

He added:

"I guess I didn't really feel like I was where I wanted to be and if I want to compete for spots in the New Zealand sides moving forward across all three formats, I actually need to spend time working on my game and not just trying to play the whole time. Yeah, for me it was just about being at home and getting time to work on my game."

Kyle Jamieson, who was recently seen in the home series against Bangladesh, is expected to be part of the squad that faces South Africa.

"I have an understanding of where my game is" - Kyle Jamieson

The all-rounder was roped in by the RCB for a sum of ₹15 crore in the 2021 IPL auctions. He had a rather good start to his career in the IPL. His high release point and slower deliveries proved to be handy for the team in their initial leg in Chennai.

Jamieson, however, struggled as the tournament progressed and found himself on the sidelines in the second leg in the UAE.

The pacer concluded:

"I don't think it's either good or bad, it's just another learning, another experience to have, and just trying to learn from situations. Look, it certainly changed my life and yeah, it was a big moment that happened, but I guess just trying to learn from that, learn from the experience I had in the IPL, and more so the 12 months in general, and I guess some of the restrictions we had around cricket."

The 27-year-old has 15 Test appearances under his belt, but has only represented New Zealand in 5 T20Is and a solitary ODI.