Paying rich tribute to Mayank Agarwal, Karnataka skipper Karun Nair called his state teammate “a hard-working cricketer” while saying his consistent hard-work over the years is the only reason behind his success at the international level in a very short span of time.
Mayank has already scored 872 runs with two double hundreds in his short-international career, and Nair, who has watched India’s Test opener from close quarters since his fledgling days at Karnataka and has also played six Test matches for India so far, said he is now “reaping the rewards”.
Karnataka will miss the services of Mayank in the ongoing Ranji Trophy 2019-20, as he is set to leave for New Zealand with India A team on January 10 and Nair feels his absence from their crucial Ranji Trophy game against Mumbai will be an opportunity for others to shine.
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Nair told reporters, “Mayank is a big player, but it (his absence) opens an opportunity for someone else to come and grab their chance. I think, Mayank has always been a hard-working cricketer, so I think it was high time that the hard work paid off.”
He continued, “It is just to do with his hard-work that he (Agarwal) is doing well now and I don’t think he has changed much at all. It is just that with the runs that he got, his confidence also improved and then as batsman confidence plays such a big role, it is all down to his hard work (rather) consistent hard-work that he is reaping the rewards.”
Meanwhile, the Karnataka skipper who has a Test triple hundred to his name for India but he couldn’t cement his place in the national squad as his last appearance in the Test cricket came way back in March 2017 against Australia in Dharamshala.
The batsman said he believes in focusing on one thing at a time though said he isn’t looking beyond the India career but currently winning Ranji Trophy for Karnataka is his ultimate goal.
Nair explained, “Not really because it is important for me first to concentrate on what's happening over here and whatever has to happen, I have no control over it. My only focus is to do well here and contribute to Karnataka. For me, it is about playing each game at a time and trying to contribute as much as I can to Karnataka and try to win games for Karnataka.”
He signed off by saying, “And that is what I am trying to do this season and looking forward to try and contribute more with the bat and as captain, so that we can go on and win games and all of us are looking to win the Ranji Trophy, so that's our ultimate goal.”
(With PTI Inputs)
