Cricket: Excited Boult keeps his mind on job

New Zealand bowler Trent Boult will play for the Sunrisers Hyderabad. Photo / Brett Phibbs

Picture this: you're huddled over a laptop with your mates in a hotel room while around the other side of the world someone is forking out over $800,000 for you to do a few weeks' work with a cricket ball.

"It was pretty exciting," New Zealand bowler Trent Boult said last night of his signing with the Sunrisers Hyderabad for this year's Indian Premier League for a cool $814,000 24 hours earlier.

"I'm not sure if it's settled in with me yet. It was a pretty unique experience, something you don't have any control over. I put my name in the auction a couple of months ago, then you let it happen."

Boult was expected to have the day off yesterday when New Zealand played Scotland in their second World Cup game. His mind might have, shall we say, struggled to stay on the job after Monday night's events in Bangalore.

Instead he was out there, back to business knocking over the first two Scottish wickets with his first two legal balls, setting New Zealand on the way to a not altogether convincing three-wicket win.

"I felt it swung around really nicely and we bowled pretty well as a unit," left arm swing bowler Boult said.

Back to the Monday night. The 25-year-old Boult gathered with Tim Southee, Luke Ronchi, Kane Williamson and Adam Milne to follow IPL events.

Southee already had a gig with the Rajasthan Royals; Williamson was picked up early in proceedings by Hyderabad; while Milne got a contract with Royal Challengers Bangalore. Only Ronchi, surprisingly, missed out.

"It really is a once-in-a-lifetime thing," Boult said.

"The guys were pretty elated for me. Everyone's pretty tight knit in this group. But the focus is still on the World Cup. There's a lot of cricket to be played between now and then."

A year ago, Corey Anderson was snapped up by the Mumbai Indians for $866,000. Four years ago, Ross Taylor was hired for $US1 million by the Royals; in 2012 Brendon McCullum pocketed $1.076 million when he returned to Kolkata Knight Riders.

Boult's never made any secret that test cricket is his real love. But he has worked hard on his white ball bowling and, along with Southee, makes a formidable combination.

"They showed incredible skill," Scotland's captain Preston Mommsen said last night.

"Those guys play a lot of cricket and if there's any assistance they know how to exploit it, and they did."

Hyderabad will be hoping to see that for themselves in April and May.