When Krunal Pandya was sent in a number 3, very few imagined the impact that he was going to have on the highly important contest. Batting without any fear, the left-hander took the Delhi Daredevils bowling attack apart in a whirlwind 37-ball 86.
Speaking to the official website of Mumbai Indians, the 25-year old revealed Head Coach Ricky Ponting’s role in his growth as a free-spirited stroke maker. Krunal also expressed his delight on interacting with mentor Sachin Tendulkar.
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The all-rounder affirmed, “It was Ricky’s decision; I was padded up actually when Rohit got out. Ricky told me, I am going in next and to go there and express myself. You play the way you play. It came out good; I knew they had two leg spinners and one left arm spinner. So, I was trying to play long and Ponting asked me to play naturally.”
The elder of the Pandya brothers added, “He was really happy with the way I played and the way I executed my shots. Everyone was happy and it was a must win game for us. It feels good that I could contribute something to the team.“
On Tendulkar’s presence in the team management, Krunal enthused, “It doesn’t happen often. I feel really blessed that he is a part of Mumbai Indians when I am playing. It seriously feels amazing. The respect and knowledge which he possesses is crucial for our team. I can approach him anytime if I need any suggestion which helps the team morale.”
The hard-hitting batsman had flayed Delhi’s potent spin duo of Amit Mishra and Imran Tahir to all parts of the stadium. Despite smashing seven fours and six sixes, Krunal was not able to reach the three-figure mark.
However, he played down the near miss by alluding to his team’s emphatic victory. The spinner reflected, “No not disappointed. I don’t think of myself when I am playing whether am bowling or batting. I just think of the team. There was no pressure as such that I had to score a hundred.
“I was just going after the bowling. During my innings, I never looked at the scoreboard because I knew I was hitting the ball well and the run-rate was only increasing.”
Mumbai Indians are scheduled to play their final league match against Gujarat Lions at Kanpur on Saturday. In what is essentially a must-win contest, they will hope that Krunal Pandya continues his impressive run of form.
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