Mitchell McClenaghan showers praises on Hardik Pandya

New Zealand fast bowler Mitchell McClenaghan has hailed the Indian all-rounder Hardik Pandya for his skills and confidence. The Kiwi believes that his Mumbai Indians teammate is extremely of confident of whatever skills he possesses. He is currently playing in the T20 leagues around the word and hasn’t taken up the contract offered by New Zealand Cricket (NZC). However, the McClenaghan has cleared that he still stands by his decision to chose T20 over the country and believed he will be picked in the team when in full form.

New Zealand is currently in India playing the limited overs series and have so far fought gamely in all the matches. McClenaghan was the part of the squad which toured the country exactly a year ago and also had lost the series in the decider. But now he prefers to play only shortest format and the franchise. When he is not playing, the Kiwi player invests his time in behindtheseams.tv, an online channel for interviewing cricket players globally.

I have control of my own career

Mitchell McClenaghan has revealed that he is satisfied playing in the T20 leagues but also cleared that he is available for NZC whenever he is not playing. “Of course I stand by my decision. I’m still available for NZC when I’m not playing T20 tournaments, like now as the SA tournament has fallen over. The only regret is stepping away from the financial security of a NZC contract. The positive is that I have control of my own career,” he told DNA India during an interview.

When asked about his Mumbai Indians teammate Hardik Pandya who has taken the international cricket by storm since his debut, he was all praise of him. “He is just confident in what skills he has and is a fearless striker of the ball. His bowling has come on as well and a good opening bowling option if the match up is right with his skiddy outswing,” the 31-year-old bowler continued. He also said that the key to success in the limited overs cricket is to forget the previous ball and concentrate on the next one.

“A very short memory! You need to be able to move past the previous delivery as quickly as possible and focus on the next ball. Planning pre-game is also critical with the fielding restrictions and the class of batsman you are up against. You need to find an edge through scouting,” he concluded reiterating that he will be available for his country whenever needed.