Delhi Capitals (DC) pacer Avesh Khan heaped praise on his head coach Ricky Ponting, saying merely listening to the Australian legend in the dressing room gives him goosebumps. He also said Ponting has helped the players immensely in improving their skills and mental aspects of the game.
The 24-year-old pacer, whose toe-crushing yorkers has earned praise from many cricketers, has also revealed that his process of fine-tuning blockhole deliveries is similar to other speedsters who also either keep a shoe or a handkerchief at the front-crease.
Avesh told PTI Bhasha in an interview on Thursday (September 30): “It is my fourth year with Ricky sir and I can say that he has been a legendary player and an equally great coach. He talks about the mental aspect of the game. Just listening to him in the dressing room gives me goosebumps. He has an open mind and you can discuss anything you wish with him.”
He further said on his bowling, “I always try to practice as many yorkers at the nets. It is a wicket-taking delivery and one can bring perfection with practice only. I use a bottle or cone or even my shoe for that. When the ball hits the target, it enhances my confidence too. It is very important to land perfect yorkers in pressure situations at it is the only delivery which can save a bowler from getting punished by the batter. I always try to welcome the new batter with a perfectly-executed Yorker.”
Khan is also happy with his performance in the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL 2021), picking up 18 wickets in 11 matches so far, and said he is aiming to help DC win their maiden title this year in the UAE.
The pacer further said of his IPL journey, “It has been a dream-like journey so far. I started playing cricket as a hobby and was always very passionate about the game. When I used to play with a tennis ball in Indore, I had never thought of coming so far.”
Avesh also said he is honing his abilities and learning a lot of things while playing alongside South African pace duo of Kagiso Rabada and Anrich Nortje for DC in the IPL. He said, “I have been learning a lot from them. I keep asking them about the pitch, which bowl will work for a particular batter or what to bowl in a particular situation. Our focus remains on working as a unit, not on individual performances.”
He signed off by saying on MS Dhoni, “Mahi bhai has inspired a lot of youngsters. I also wanted to play under his captaincy. I spoke to him after the match against CSK and he told me many things about the game which I will always follow.”
(With PTI Inputs)
