Kolkata (West Bengal) [India], April 24 : Punjab Kings (PBKS) Nehal Wadhera opened up on his meeting with star India batter Virat Kohli after his team's win over Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) at Bengaluru, saying that he asked the Indian legend about the improvements he could make in his batting.
Wadhera was speaking to the media ahead of his side's match against defending champions Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) at Eden Gardens in Kolkata. PBKS is at the fifth spot with five wins and three losses, giving them 10 points. So far, Wadhera has scored 189 runs in seven matches at an average of 37.80, with a strike rate of over 146 and a half-century. His best score this season is 62 and he has played some crucial knocks for PBKS.
Speaking to the media, Wadhera said about his talk with Virat after the win over RCB in Bengaluru, during which he scored 33* during a run-chase of 96 runs in 14 overs, "As soon as the match got finished, I went up to him and I asked him, Virat bhai, you have seen me for the last two years and this year. So, do you see any change in me or do you want... What do you think I can improve? Because I am really a big fan of him and if he tells me anything, you know, I would always, you know, just start working on it. And he told me that, Nehal, I liked your batting. And I told him that, Virat bhai, this was my plan."
"So, I executed it. He said that, yes, your plan was good to just attack the bowlers because in low-scoring games, it is always challenging. So, after that, he said that, I can see composure in your batting and the shots that you are hitting, you know, you are hitting with a lot of thought.
He was happy to see my preparations and he was happy to, you know, share his experience with me. And I was also equally happy taking all his experience and all the compliments that he gave me. And I was really happy hearing that from a legend like Virat," he added.
Speaking about his crucial knock of 33* against RCB during that small run-chase, which proved to be tricky for PBKS as they lost five wickets, Nehal said that he likes playing under tough situations and the innings was a great chance to prove himself.
"I think RR was also a game for me in which I missed winning the match (a knock of 62 while chasing 206 runs in which PBKS was restricted to 155/9). But I regretted that. Although I scored well, but I was not that much satisfied because our team couldn't cross the line."
"So, if we talk about the match against RCB, I think that before batting, the coach (Ricky Ponting) came to me and he told me that Nehal, we just need to run a ball. You can just go easy. I said, okay, coach. But as soon as I went inside, I felt that RCB had put a lot of pressure on us at that time. So, I thought that now that I have come inside, my match-ups were nice. And I think this is my responsibility now to make my team take over," he added.
Nehal said that during his knock with RCB, he wanted to put the bowlers under more pressure and thought rather than making his own team a victim of that pressure.
"Because in the short targets, usually in their teams, you know, if a wicket falls early or something, then there is a lot of pressure. So, as soon as Suyash (Sharma) came on the bowling, the first 3-4 balls, I usually take inside to, you know, just understand how the pitch is playing or what is the condition of the ground. So, as soon as I took 3-4 balls and I knew that he was just trying to trick me and later it was easy for me to hit a six against him," he said.
"So, I just started with the flow and I told the non-striker that if you are okay with singles, you play. But I am just going to attack all the bowlers. So, from there, I just started, and from there, you know, the match completely changed, and it turned out to be well for me and also for Punjab Kings," he concluded.