I put lot of pressure on myself in nets, therefore I excel: Suryakumar Yadav

Jaipur: Player of the Match Suryakumar Yadav said he is able to give his best in the middle because he puts a lot of pressure on himself in the nets to work on his batting flaws.

"I have not been doing anything different, just being myself whatever I have been doing since the last 3-4 years. I bat the same way in the nets and replicate the same in the middle. I try to put a lot of pressure on myself in the nets, for example if I get out I just try to come out of the nets and try and think what better I could have done and it really helps when I play in the middle," he said at the presentation ceremony.

Suryakumar played a crucial role along with Captain Rohit Sharma to get the chase closer for the likes of Rishabh Pant to go past the 165-run target set by New Zealand after cracking magnificent 62 and 48 runs, respectively.

The Player of the Match said the ball was coming on nicely due to dew, but at later stages it became really slow, but expressed his happiness to end up on a winning note. "I would have loved to finish the game but that's how you learn and move forward," he said.

About Trent Boult, he said it was his wife's birthday also and it was a perfect gift from him.

Meanwhile finger-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin said New Zealand's total was a slightly under-par and thought India would cruise home around the 15th over, but it turned out to be a nail-biter.

On purchasing two wickets in the match, Ashwin said he takes each of the 24 balls as an event and looks at each ball as an opportunity. "It's important to take each of the 24 balls as an event, and look at each ball in isolation and as an opportunity. You might have to play catch-up, but the batsman is trying to play catch-up and trying to play you too, so you can't get intimidated," he said.

"The slower you bowled, there was more purchase you got on this pitch. If you hit the seam and tossed it up, it did things like Santner showed in the second innings. It's tricky in T20s, you can't miss your lengths and you don't know when to toss it up but here it did help to give it some air," he added.

Ashwin said it was difficult for him to bowl first up because he did not know the pace at which he should bowl. "I bowled the first over in the powerplay, and figuring out the pace to bowl is important and it took me some time to figure that out. It's about varying the pace and knowing when to vary it.

Replying to a query, he said it is too early for him to comment on Rahul Dravid's coaching style, but he's put the hard yards in through the U-19 level etc.

"He won't leave much to chance, and he will be all about preparation and process, so that we can bring the happiness back into the Indian dressing room," Ashwin added. (UNI)

(Photo Credit: Twitter/Suryakumar Yadav)