Leg-spinner Ravi Bishnoi revealed that the plan for him was to bowl to the right line and length in his debut T20I match for India. On Wednesday, Bishnoi made a dream entry into international cricket, taking the wickets of Roston Chase and Rovman Powell in the same over and conceding just 17 runs in his quota of four overs.
Bishnoi’s superlative performance set the base for India’s six-wicket win over the West Indies and earned him the ‘Player of the Match’ award. Bishnoi is also the first player from India’s 2020 batch in the Men’s U19 World Cup to make his senior India debut.
“The plan was to bowl on the right line and length. The plan was not to give the batters much room as when they open their hands, they will hit the shots. They (West Indies) are one of the best sides in T20 and the plan was to bowl stump-to-stump and not give much room. In doing so, I gave away five-six wides but will try to correct it next time,” said Bishnoi in a chat with senior leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal in a video uploaded by BCCI on Thursday.
Before the start of the match, Bishnoi received with his T20I cap from Chahal, the senior leg-spinner in the side. “When I was presented with my debut cap, I felt really good. It was a dream come true and it felt better when I received the cap from Yuzi (Chahal) bhaiya. Everybody has a dream to play for India and when I got the opportunity to play, I tried to play to the best of my abilities,” stated Bishnoi.
Bishnoi, 21, also revealed how was welcome from the Indian team, especially head coach Rahul Dravid. “Everyone has a dream, including me, of playing for India. I was excited and nervous when I came to the practice on day one as many seniors were there. I felt really good when Rahul (Dravid) sir welcomed me into the team.”
“I enjoyed myself with my seniors during the warm-up and net sessions, everyone responded well and backed me to do better in those little things. I have to learn a lot and I will try to do my best for the team and lead to victory.”
