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Chennai Super Kings' batting mainstay Suresh Raina believes that Rishabh Pant can do wonders for the Indian team if he is looked after by his teammates.
Suresh Raina, who was featured in the 'Follow the Blues' segment of the Star Sports' show Cricket Connected, talked about the preparations he has been doing with the likes of Rishabh Pant, Mohammed Shami and Piyush Chawla for the upcoming IPL.
"I have been practising with Rishabh Pant. He was hitting the ball very well. Then I had a net with Shami. All bowlers have been coming here and practising. Piyush Chawla also came, he bowled really well."
Suresh Raina shared that his other CSK teammates, including the captain MS Dhoni and pacer Deepak Chahar, have been training hard and even practising for the prestigious tournament.
"I have been speaking to a lot of the players, everything has been planned. Deepak Chahar has been playing and MS Dhoni is also training hard at his home. Everyone has to do it because this game requires lot of fitness, lot of commitment."
Suresh Raina expressed excitement about playing in the IPL, and welcomed the decision to go early to the UAE and have a much-needed practice camp there.
"We are going to have a camp. We have lots to do, we are going there I think 18-20 days before. It is good to go early because IPL is coming and we have been under lockdown for 4-5 months. So, it is good to be there before IPL and it is going to be exciting."
Suresh Raina on Rishabh Pant's bright future
Suresh Raina spoke highly of Rishabh Pant's talent while highlighting the latter's accomplishments in international cricket, including a couple of centuries on foreign soil in Test cricket.
"I think Rishabh Pant has been amazing. He has scored a lot of runs for the country as well as in the IPL and in domestic cricket. He has got two Test hundreds. He played really well in T20s as well as ODIs."
Suresh Raina predicted that the Delhi wicket-keeper-batsman would dish out some memorable performances for the Indian team, while asking his teammates to stand by him in adverse situations.
"I think he is a gun player, he has a quality future. He needs to be really looked after by his teammates. And then you will see lot of great performances coming from him very soon."
Having completed 15 years from his international debut, Suresh Raina thanked his first captain Rahul Dravid for the guidance he received from the current Head of Cricket at the NCA.
"When I played my first game, it made me believe that I can play for a long period of time. Rahul Dravid was my first captain, he really supported me. I was very fortunate to play with him and I played under him."
Suresh Raina is the second highest run-scorer in the history of the IPL with 5368 runs to his name, only behind Virat Kohli. He would be hoping for some outstanding performances in the upcoming IPL to stake a claim for a spot in the Indian team.
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