Star England batsman Dawid Malan, who is the No.1 ranked T20I batsman, said that he is willing to bat at any position for Punjab Kings (PBKS) in IPL 2021.
Dawid Malan was bought by Punjab Kings in IPL 2021 at the price of INR 1.5 crores and this will his first IPL campaign. The swashbuckling No.1 T20I batsman is likely to make his IPL debut later week.
However, with the likes of Kl Rahul, Mayank Agarwal, Chris Gayle, and Nicholas Pooran in the squad there have been some talks over few days where Dawid Malan, who bats at No.3 for England, will bat for Punjab Kings in IPL 14.
Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma have mastered the basics of Test cricket- Dawid Malan
Talking to Hindustan Times, Dawid Malan admitted that he loves opening but is happy to bat wherever the team wants him to.
“People often forget that the only time I don’t open the innings is when I play for England. The No. 3 spot was the only spot that was available. I have opened in domestic competitions too. Gradually I have found myself batting at No. 4 and even 5 for England. Not that I prefer to bat there but I am happy to bat at whichever position the team needs me to bat at,” Dawid Malan told Hindustan Times.
Malan said that his primary aim is to play Test cricket for England and since the start of the domestic season in England clashes with the IPL, he had not been able to participate in the cash-rich league so far.
“My primary aim has been to play Test cricket for England and keep doing that. But playing Test cricket for England means you don’t put your name in the IPL because you have to play the first six to eight four-day games of the year which is at the same time as the IPL. That played a massive factor (in missing out on IPL),” he said.
Concluding his comments, Malan said every batsman has good and bad days but he should always play the way he thinks is best, and not how people want him to play.
“The criticism and expectation are part of the game. We are all humans. There will be days when you will play like you haven’t picked the bat ever, and then there will be days when you hit everything out of the park. You have to block out the noise. You should play like you want to and not how people expect you to play,” he concluded.
Punjab Kings will play their first match of IPL 2021 against Rajasthan Royals on 12th April.
(Hindustan Times inputs)
