Uttar Pradesh’s 19-year-old pacer Ankit Rajpoot has got the knack to rise to the occasion. Playing for India Blue, his 3/44 against Delhi on in the colours of India Blue at Holkar Cricket Stadium, Indore, not only helped his team clinch the match but also highlighted his ability to perform under pressure. The right-arm medium pacer, who made his Ranji debut in 2012 and then for CSK in the last IPL, spoke to this paper on a variety of subjects. Excerpts:
On the tournament: This is my first NKP Salve Challenger trophy. It’s a big stage and I know that a good show here can do me a world of good. I just want to perform to the best of my ability.
On his performance against Delhi: I wanted to get the basics right. My UP teammate and now India Blue mate Bhuvneshwar advised me to first get a hang of things and not to try too much in terms of variation. Once I got my rhythm going I started using the slower ones. As regards to the match, Viru was going great guns. We did well to get him out and my cleaning up Bhatia proved to be the final nail in the coffin.
On his different variations: Fast bowlers need to have a lot of tricks under their belt to be successful in ODIs and T20s. I’m working on a variety of slower deliveries — the leg cutter delivered from the fourth finger, split-finger slower ones and normal off-cutters. Along with all these I want to develop a yorker which is always vital for a fast bowler.
On his training methods: I have started working on the slower ones a lot after playing in the IPL for CSK. I bowl about 30-40 slower balls every day and mix them up with yorkers.
