With Rahul at No. 4, Pandey ready to wait for his chance

Dambulla, August 18

With the Indian team management having already announced that KL Rahul will bat at No. 4 in the upcoming ODI series against Sri Lanka, middle-order batsman Manish Pandey says he is ready to wait for his chance. “That’s where I bat, the middle-order,” said Pandey here today. “That’s where I’ve been batting for a long time. But if the team feels somebody else can play that role really well, I would love to see that happen.” 

Pandey has been in contention for a while now. He made everyone sit up and take notice by scoring a match-winning century against Australia in Sydney in January 2016 but a poor outing against New Zealand at home last year resulted in his ouster from the team. “The game I played in Australia, I batted at No. 4. That’s where I normally bat. Batting at No. 5 or 6 during the New Zealand series was a bit new to me, and I think it took me some time to get used to that position,” said Pandey. “At that position, you need to go at everything from ball one. I think I have adapted to that situation well. Let’s see how it goes.”

The 27-year-old has been part of the selectors’ plans for some time now. He was even named in the original 15-member squad for the Champions Trophy in England, but he got injured and missed the opportunity. “That was a really sad. I missed two IPL games and the Champions Trophy. Anyway, I am happy to be back.” — PTI