Positive mindset key to success: Siddarth

Deepankar Sharda

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, April 17

Having claimed five wickets in last three outings, Siddharth Kaul has already proved his worth with the ball for Sunrisers Hyderabad in this edition of the Indian Premier League, and the 27-year-old says “positive mindset” has helped him reap rich dividends so far.      

“I focus on my basics to strengthen my bowling attack. It helps me to have a positive frame of mind even while bowling the toughest of the opponents,” said Kaul, who received his maiden India call up earlier this year.

The speedster further said his team’s good showing in the tournament has given him the confidence to experiment with his bowling.   

“I am improving on pace and have added more variation to my attack. I have improved on bowling knuckle balls to achieve perfection in the death overs,” he said.

Kaul, who will turn 28 next month, however, did not forget to mention the role of his teammates, particularly the likes of Bhuvneshwar Kumar, in his success.  

“It’s quite easy to perform when guys like Bhuvneshwar, Billy Stanlake, Rashid Khan and Shakib Al Hasan are around. I am just a helping hand among the lot,” he said. 

“Bhuvneshwar always passes valuable tips… and I share a great bond with him,” Kaul said, when asked about the on field relation with the India speedster.    

On the team’s strategy for the upcoming match against hosts Kings XI Punjab, Kaul said: “There cannot be any specific planning to stop Chris Gayle or KL Rahul. It depends upon the situation. The strategy will be simple to stop runs, and how to implement it will be decided during nets.” 

Variety is always welcome

Sunrisers’ Australian import, Billy Stanlake, meanwhile, said “variety in bowling” was always helpful in the shortest format of the game.  

“Having little bit of depth and variety in bowling attack is always helpful. And Indian pitches have responded well so far,” said over six feet tall Australian speedster.

“T20 cricket needs variety in bowling and a lot depends on the performance of bowlers. If you have variety, you can go a long way,” insisted Stanlake, who idolises former Australian fast bowler Brett Lee. 

In the previous edition, Stanlake had played in only two matches while representing Royal Challengers Bengaluru and the lanky bowler said he was looking to get more opportunities in current edition.  

“First three matches of this season went well. I am looking forward to getting more chances in this tournament,” he said.

Taking about his love for football, Stanlake said: “It has always been a part of my life. I also played cricket growing up. I played football in the winter and cricket in summers, but I was just little bit better at cricket,” he laughed.