Pacer Sandeep Warrier says exposure to top-quality cricket under pressure in the Indian Premier League (IPL) sharpens the skills of Indian domestic players and helps them execute those better.
A Kerala-born 29-year-old right-arm quick, Warrier, was last season brought in as a replacement for injured Kamlesh Nagarkoti by two-time champions Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR).
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He featured in three matches for the side but impressed the think-tank so much that they retained him for this year's edition in the UAE, starting September 19.
The speedster emphasized the gains for players like him when an IPL franchise gives them so much encouragement.
"The main thing that we learn from each of them (big players around) is how they treat the game," Warrier was quoted as saying over KKR's official website. "The way our Indian international players like Dinesh Karthik, Robin Uthappa or Shubman Gill prepare and treat the game, it's way different from what we see in domestic cricket."
"So, I think it's just the mindset that you can get from IPL or by playing a level higher than domestic cricket."
"That's all. Basically, it's figuring out how confident they are in executing their skills. If you are a domestic player, you may just hold yourself back and not be sure what you are doing."
"But one level up, even though they are not 100 percent sure, they will just go and execute it. This is the main difference I found," he added.
Given the fact he has been retained, Warrier knows there will be more expectations of him from the franchise whenever he gets to play.
"I played IPL after spending 55 matches (on the bench). So, for me it was not much of pressure as I knew if I could execute my plans, I would be successful. And if I failed to execute, I needed to work more. That's all that I was thinking."
"So, last year was not much of pressure as no one was expecting anything out of me. Let's see how it goes this year," he added.
Knight Riders begin their campaign on September 23 in Abu Dhabi against defending champions Mumbai Indians (MI).
(Inputs from ANI)
