Lucknow Super Giants’ Aiden Markram (ANI Photo) KOLKATA: Lucknow Super Giants’ Aiden Markram is not the type of batsman to go out there and start hitting sixes. It gets the job done without much flourish, but delivers what is required. Excerpts from an interview with the South African white-ball captain…LSG have three players who have led their national sides in you, Nicholas Pooran and Mitch Marsh. The captain does Rishabh Pant bounce ideas off you?Yes, it has. It’s always a fine balance because it’s his team and he wants to do it his way, which is important. The nice thing is that whenever there’s a bit of uncertainty or he needs an opinion, he gets in touch with me, Mitch, Nikki, of course (strategic advisor) Kane Williamson.
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Shami reveals what makes this LSG team special after a big win The pants are in good condition…Any team that has Rishabh shooting is a better team. He is an absolute entertainer with serious skills. He always wants to lead from the front. He is very proud of his performance. You can’t keep a good player down for too long.Unlike last year, LSG have no injury problems this time around…Definitely better than last year. We saw some really good things from the pace attack in the first two games. Obviously the pacer (Mohammed) Shami connection with his ability and experience is huge.Shami was brilliant in the last game…There is no one like him. Having him in the team and also having him share that knowledge with some of the younger pacers like Prince Yadav and Mayank (Yadav) is invaluable.You have developed as a T20 player…It was more about understanding my role. Now you have a lot of guys playing T20 cricket who are capable of hitting sixes off the first ball. My way of doing things may look a little different. You are still playing Test cricket and you cannot develop the technical side of the T20 game. I have to work with what I have and it’s more about trying to hit good cricket shots and trusting that it will work on the day. So the sixes might be a few less, but if I can still hit at the pace I want, I’m happy.You are known to be very calm. Have you ever lost your temper on the field?Of course. You are only human. I think after a certain amount of time, if you’re not performing, you get very frustrated. It happened when I was a little younger. Over time I settled down. I remember talking to Hashim Amla about it and he just said that cricket is one of the reasons we live, but not the only reason. Trying to be consistent whether you succeed or not is important as a human being. That’s something I’m trying to manage now.Would you call 136 in the WTC final your most impressive knock?It will be one of the most amazing days of my life. Emotions were like a roller coaster for both teams and naturally we were chasing the first trophy. To do it in a place like Lord’s with our friends and family around was special. It is a memory that will live with me forever.what are you thinking Rajasthan Royals” young opener Vaibhav Sooryavanshi?He is incredible to watch to be fair. Try to think back to when I was 15, I think I would have done well to get the ball on the boundary for four. He is coming out in the IPL and hitting sixes. He is absolutely fearless. You recognize it, you respect it. I am sure he will have a huge future ahead of him and will keep a lot of us cricket fans glued to the TV.
