Rajasthan Royals produced some of the giant deals during the IPL [Indian Premier League] auction this year. They broke the bank to rope in the likes of Ben Stokes, Jaydev Unadkat, and Jofra Archer.

Archer was drafted in the by the franchise for a staggering Rs 7.2 crore, 36 times his base price. According to him, it is still unbelievable that his price skyrocketed to that extent during the biddings.

“We'd just finished one of the Big Bash games, I was a bit upset because we lost - it was the last prelim game and we had to hope that Renegades beat Brisbane Heat, and they did - but before that, I was a bit upset. So I went into my room to watch the auction, and I still can't believe that so many teams were bidding for me, and I still can't believe I went for that much money,” Jofra told ESPNcricinfo.

Archer also said that he doesn’t know what the teams in the lucrative league are looking for, as his Sussex teammate—Tymal Mills remained unsold. He also said that the exclusion of Steve Smith, who was set to captain the Rajasthan-based franchise, will shift some hype off of him.

“I haven't really spoken to him too much about it as we were still playing at the time and I didn't want to shift my focus from the Big Bash,” said Archer. “But this year the draft was a bit weird. Guys like Martin Guptill, Tymal Mills, even Chris Gayle didn't get picked up in the first rounds. So I'm not too sure what the teams are looking for, really, but I just can't wait to get out there and just do well.

“The biggest key is not to let it get to you. There's hype in every tournament in whatever tournament you go to, but obviously, with Steve Smith not being there now, that probably shifts some of the hype off of me, but I just want to stay clear of that, to be honest.”

Archer also talked about how the journey has been until now. The 23-year-old gained popularity during his stint with Hobart Hurricanes in the Big Bash League [BBL]. He said that he wants to continue the good form and take it back to Sussex, his county side.

“It is life-changing,” Archer reportedly said. “I'll be able to buy my own home and change my family's life as well.

“It's probably the biggest T20 competition outside of international cricket, and I can't play international cricket at the moment, so it's probably going to be the biggest challenge of my life so far. I just want to perform as well as I did in the Big Bash and take that form back to Sussex.

"Two years ago I was playing club cricket, then halfway through that club season, I made my debut here with Sussex. And the rest is history really. Everything happens for a reason, I believe that, and I showed that this winter."