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Gujarat Titans' left-arm spinner R Sai Kishore who was previously a part of Chennai Super Kings (CSK) squad has called Hardik Pandya’s captaincy style similar to that of MS Dhoni.
"Hardik and Mahi bhai (MS Dhoni) are pretty similar in the way they handle things, they both are pretty calm," Sai Kishore told the media during a virtual interaction session on March 24.
"One thing that I really admire about Hardik is his ability to handle success and failure equally – that is something very unique about him. He is a level-headed guy and that works (for him)," he added.
Kishore did not get to play a single game while he was with CSK for two seasons. He made his IPL debut in 2022. He picked up six wickets from five games at an average of 20.17 and an economy rate of 7.56 runs per over. The 26-year-old is looking to replicate Titans’ success in the next season.
"The tag of being defending champions is up to us whether to take it or not. We played well last year and that is why we won. I think if we can do that (then) the tag won’t matter much," he said.
Kishore talked about the new rule of 'Impact Player' in IPL and compared it to the super-sub rule which was earlier used in international circuit.
"It is more like the super-sub rule where we can either use a bowler or a batsman. It is basically like playing with 12 people. We have already played with this (rule) in domestic (cricket). The only change is that we can use it till the 20th over, in domestic it was restricted to the 14th over. In 20 overs, it should be a lot easier to handle,” he said.
While there are plenty of left-arm spinners including Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel and Shahbaz Ahmed, Kishore is hopeful of making it to the senior side.
Yes, there are a lot of left-arm spinners in India and this (IPL) is a very good opportunity but I would like to be here now in the present and play well for Gujarat. In the last five years, my skill-set has gone up and I want to keep improving. If it happens that I do very well in the IPL, I am going to play for India," he said.
Kishore who has scored just 29 runs from 10 innings in T20 format is looking to improve his batting to get in reckoning of senior side. In T20 format, he has not got enough chances. However, in List A format he has two half-centuries.
"It is a work in progress. I have done well in domestic (cricket) also. I know the areas where I am good at and areas where I need to work on. I am trying to put in hours into my batting and fielding," he said.
"In the IPL and higher you go, you want to bat at the top. In Tamil Nadu, I have had the luxury of batting at the top in a few games. The death overs batting needs more work and attention. Finding a pattern or formula to score quick runs is what I am working on," Sai Kishore concluded.
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