Both the Delhi Daredevils and the Rising Pune Supergiants weren’t willing to take their Tuesday night IPL encounter at the Dr. Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy stadium lightly.
“We want to give everything we can to win a game,” stressed Pune Assistant Coach Hrishikesh Kanitkar.
“It can be a good opportunity to test the guys that haven’t played so far.”
With little left in the tournament for the side, was it hard to motivate the squad?
“It is not at all hard to motivate. Everyone is a professional. Each one plays for his own and the pride of the team.
“We want to win no matter what the position is.
“You never know when you start turning things around. Two big victories here will help us next year to really believe in ourselves and come out strong,” he countered.
The skipper’s form cropped up. “See the thing is we’re used to seeing (M.S.) Dhoni come out and finish the innings.
“But like anybody else in cricket, there are times when things happen and don’t happen.
“Not necessarily that a person is not trying.
“I don’t think we should read too much into it. I haven’t seen him frustrated at all.
“He’s always been very calm. It’s just a matter of clicking and it will happen sooner than later,” assured Kanitkar, a hard-hitting batsman himself in his time.
For the Daredevils, Pravin Amre said personnel changes would be effected by a horses-for-courses policy.
“We will see the wicket, how many left-handers they have and other factors to decide,” he said. Would the Sunday loss to Mumbai or the contest against Pune, placed lowest in the table, affect the approach?
“We’ve beaten top four teams and played good smart cricket. The pressure will be same on both teams,” he predicted.
On his mentoring mantras, especially for the youngsters he said, “This format allows us to be open. We should be there whenever they need us.
“There can be a lot of nerves so it is important to be relaxed. During nets there shouldn’t be too many instructions.
“At this age, they have to express themselves. Rishab (Pant) expressed himself well. They have to play with freedom to be better players.
“And we have the best coaching staff and yes it is great to work with Rahul Dravid,” concluded Amre.
