India’s greenhorn spinner Ravi Bishnoi said it was a dream come true moment for him after he made his International debut against West Indies at Eden Gardens, Kolkata on Wednesday.
Bishnoi made an impressive debut as he returned with impressive figures of 2-17 and it was a cherry on the top of the cake as he performed magnificently against the Windies.
Bishnoi accounted for Roston Chase as he plumbed him in front of the wickets. Subsequently, he dismissed Rovman Powell in the same over to push the visitors on the backfoot. The leg-spinner got both of his wickets on googlies as the West Indies batters failed to pick him.
In fact, Bishnoi conceded six wides in his four overs and he could have had even better bowling figures had he not bowled extras. Bishnoi admitted that he was a bit nervous in the initial phase of his spell but he was able to settle down after bowling a couple of overs.
Bishnoi had a debut to remember as he was awarded the Player of the match for his fine performance. The youngster played a key role in keeping West Indies at 157-7 and thus played an instrumental role in India’s six-wicket win.
Ravi Bishnoi said in the post-match presentation, “Feeling better now (no nerves). It’s a dream to play for India and it felt good. I was nervous at the start but wanted to contribute for the team as we know West Indies is one of the strongest teams in T20 cricket. It’s slightly a challenge to grip the ball when there’s dew. I never thought about this (winning the MoM) but it’s a dream come true moment for me”.
Bishnoi would have gained a lot of confidence after such an impressive performance in his debut match. On the other hand, Suryakumar Yadav also played a crucial knock of 34 runs off just 18 balls to help his team get over the line.
Yadav said after the game, “Looking at the dew, Rishabh and me decided to hit square because the outfield was very quick. I like batting anywhere, but today it was different and I badly wanted to finish the game. Glad to win and stay not out. Very important for Venkatesh, when he came in the difference was just eight runs, so I told him there was no need for any fancy stroke. Just asked him to play good shots and good cricket and really happy with the way he played. Their spinners bowled beautifully. It turned with bounce and gripped. With heavy dew it was very difficult for them to grip it and it was advantageous for us”.
The second T20I will be played at the same venue of Eden Gardens, Kolkata on Friday.
