Sanjay Bangar credits success as coach to his recent playing days

Sanjay Bangar when playing for Railways along with Murali Kartik

Former Indian player Sanjay Bangar credited his success as the coach of Kings XI Punjab in this season’s IPL having played competitive cricket till last year.

"All other teams also have Indian coaches on their support staff," Bangar said. "My advantage was that I was playing till just over 15 months ago. I have seen how most of these players respond under match situations. Maybe having played till very recently helped a bit."

Not many Indian coaches have been this successful or good enough to be there among the foreign coaches at the international circuit motoring the national side or a much demanding IPL franchise. However, the 41-year-old former Railways player is enjoying his time at the helm of things at Kings XI. Many notable experts and commentators have praised him for his clear mindedness for picking the playes he wanted at the auction and using them well at the time of need.

"The one thing that is of paramount importance to us is the team composition. We have been very fortunate that the players who missed out have been very supportive and helped in creating a good dressing room atmosphere," the coach credited his players for this team atmosphere. It has to be noted that reputed players like Shaun Marsh and Murali Kartik were benched.

Commenting on the qualifier against Kolkata Knight Riders at Eden Gardens, he said: "The key is to not think too far ahead and try and do the things that we are good at, and also challenge our own limitations," said Bangar who is known to keep things simple.

"That has been the emphasis for our team. We have not really gone beyond that. That has helped us play consistent cricket over a longer period of time," Bangar added.