Manish Pandey eyeing World T20 squad

The Karnataka batsman wants to take the oppotunity given to him on the Australian tour

The Karnataka batsman Manish Pandey, who has been selected in the squad for the tour of Australia, is now eyeing to grab every opportunity to be a part of the T20 World Cup squad, as the Indian Express reports.

Manish Pandey stated the very obvious thing in his recent interview. He said, “Obviously, it is a dream of any cricketer to play in the World Cup. I want to use every opportunity that I get and make a case for myself for selection in the Indian team for the World T20. I have had a decent record in the IPL.”

Pandey has also replaced Suresh Raina for the ODI Series down under. Raina’s poor form against the Proteas helped Pandey grab his spot in the team against Australia.

Manish Pandey has been a regular player for India A in Australia for quite a few times now. He loves to play the hooks and pulls and thus would love to play on the bouncy tracks. This was another reason for the selectors to go for him over Raina. His experience down under could be essential to the team.

Pandey said, “I think my previous tours to Australia will be very helpful as I have an idea about the wickets and the conditions. Also when India A went to Australia for a limited overs competition, we won the tournament. I also had a good tournament. I love playing on the bouncy pitches.”

Karnataka’s season very disappointing: Pandey

His domestic team Karnataka didn’t perform well in either of the domestic tournaments, be it Ranji or Vijay Hazare. Karnataka couldn’t qualify for the knockouts of both the tournaments and this led to major disappointment in the mind of the Bengaluru batsman.

He had a laugh along with the sadness when he was called up for the national squad. He further added, “I was a bit hurt as we were two-time champions in both Ranji Trophy and Vijay Hazare Trophy. So there was a bit of disappointment but this news of making it to the Indian team makes me feel a bit happy.”

Pandey made his international debut against Zimbabwe in which he scored 71 and considers that innings to be a massive boost for him.

In his interview, he continued, “Zimbabwe tour went well for me, I had a good performance on my debut. So the expectation that I would be in the mix was always there. If you do well in an international match, it always adds to the confidence. I never looked at it as a stop gap opportunities. It never crossed my mind that whether I will get an opportunity when the rested players come back.”

Manish Pandey was the first Indian to score a century in Indian Premier League back in 2009 for the Royal Challengers Bangalore.

Pandey concluded talking about how he tackles the problems he faces. The confident youngster said, “There isn’t any particular person that I look for guidance. I generally speak to seniors but after all these years, I have an idea about my own game. I know my strengths better and how to cope in different situations.”

Pandey will look to capture any opportunity as and when it comes, to showcase his talent in Australia.