Winning matches for your team on the final ball of the match with a six seems to be a tough task for a batsman but it isn’t for Tamil Nadu cricketers. Wicket-keeper batsman Dinesh Karthik did it in Nidahas Trophy against Bangladesh and Shahrukh Khan did it against Karnataka in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy final.
Needing five off the last ball, Shahrukh kept his nerves and smashed a six on the final ball of the match to steal a win for his team.
In an exclusive chat with OneCricket, the aggressive right-handed batter opened up about his knock, his IPL experience and the interaction with MS Dhoni.
Shahrukh explained what was going through his mind when he was facing that final delivery of the match and also talked about how it helps when his team and the players show belief and trust in him.
“There were a lot of things going on in my mind. I knew that he is going to try a Yorker and I had a plan that if he misses it, I’m gonna go for it. But at the same time, I told myself to stay calm.” he said.
“The team does believe in me and the trust that they show helps me do much much better than what I can do,” he added.
The right-hander had hit a maximum on the last ball of the penultimate over. When asked about the same, Khan said that it would have been difficult to score 20 odd runs in the final over, so, he went to his batting partner and said that he would try to go for an aggressive stroke on that particular delivery.
“The equation was tough then as we needed 21 in 13 and I told Sai Kishore that I’m gonna go for the big hit. The single was certainly not in place. Eventually, I was able to hit that last ball in the 19th over for a six. Moreover, Sai Kishore can score runs, so I was confident in giving him the strike in the final over,” Shahrukh said.
The mega auctions of the IPL are set to take place ahead of the tournament but the Tamil Nadu batsman isn’t really thinking about it rather he is more focused to do well in the upcoming domestic fixtures.
“I’m not really thinking about it (The IPL mega auctions) and just focusing on my game,” the 26-year-old said.
But Shahrukh who has played for Punjab Kings shared his experience of being the part of the IPL for the first and the kind of bond he shares with some of his fellow cricketers.
“Personally, it was a good experience for me but with team’s perspective, it didn’t really go well for us,” he said.
“I share a very good and special bond with a lot of players including Chris Jordan and Fabian Allen,” he added.
A number of young cricketers had been spotted talking to senior lads after the conclusion of their respective games during the IPL and Shahrukh too had such an instance when he had a chat with MS Dhoni. When asked about it, he said that MS just asked him to stay calm and composed and keep trusting himself.
“He (MS Dhoni) told me to stay calm and keep trusting my abilities,” Shahrukh said.
Tamil Nadu have announced the squad for One day tournament as well and have included Dinesh Karthik and Washington Sundar in the side. Talking about the two additions, the Tamil Nadu middle-order batsman said that it will bring more strength to the team.
“The team is in a good frame of mind after the win in Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy and we want to continue the momentum. The addition of Dinesh Karthik and Washington Sundar will add to the strength of the team,” he said.