IPL 2019: RCB rookie Shivam Dube is not too concerned about high expectations

Mumbai had a tough outing in the last Ranji season but their young all-rounder Shivam Dube had a different story. He excelled both with the bat and the ball and particularly his big hitting against Baroda just a few days ahead of the auction of Indian Premier League (IPL) 2019 brought him under the franchises’ notice in quick time. The 25-year-old batsman slammed five consecutive sixes off left-arm spinner Swapnil Singh in that game to show how good he can hit the cherry.

The next day after his superlative show, as Dubey gathered with his family and friends at his home in Andheri West, he found Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) picking him for a whopping Rs 5 crore in the auction. It was dream come true for the man within a matter of hours and the path was laid for the cricketer to not only feature in one of the world’s biggest T20 tournament but also to share the dressing room with some of the game’s best.

‘Superb to be along with Virat and AB’

The feeling of playing along with the likes of Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers has been particularly exciting for Dube. He did not hide his excitement when he said at a media interaction on Wednesday, according to Deccan Herald: “It feels superb to be around Virat bhai and AB de Villiers. (Everything) they do, you get to learn from. They are always nice to us and they treat us very nicely. It was very nice to get selected, especially RCB which is one of the best teams.”

Dubey, 25, will be under pressure to prove the worth of the hefty price tag but RCB have kept faith on him and he could well be making his IPL debut in the very first game the RCB will play — on Saturday, against defending champions Chennai Super Kings.

Dube, who is one of the rookies to watch out for in this IPL, however, is not too concerned about the high expectations that come with the high pay. All he is thinking at the moment is about doing well as an all-rounder to give the RCB a much-required balance.

“I’m not thinking about Rs 5 crore. I’m just here to play cricket. I didn’t expect it. But I was hoping to be selected at the auction because I had performed well in first-class cricket. So some expectation was there but I didn’t think it would be this much,” the all-rounder added.

Here is MI’s squad for IPL 2019

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