India’s express fast bowler Mayank Yadav said returning to play for India kept him motivated after the first T20I against Zimbabwe. Yadav, who was making a comeback into the Indian team after two years, was able to hit the ground running on his comeback.

The Delhi fast bowler returned with figures of 2-18 in his quota of four overs and thus was awarded Player of the Match as he played a key role in restricting Zimbabwe to 125-7. 

Yadav dismissed Zimbabwe opener Brian Bennett with a jaffa on the very first ball of the innings and also accounted for Dion Myers. The fast bowler has been troubled with injuries in his career but made a solid comeback for the national team.

“It was very difficult [to keep myself motivated], especially this two-year gap was very challenging for me as a person because the main thing is age wasn’t on my side at that time. I was only 22 or 23 years old,” Mayank told reporters after his Player of the Match-worthy exploits in the 1st T20I.

“So that thing always affected me that at such a young age, I’m having to see so much. At the same time, the motivation to play for the country exists from childhood for every player. So that motivation was there for me that I should return to play for the country and perform the way I did”.

Yadav shared the new ball with another quick fast bowler Ashok Sharma and revealed he shared his knowledge with the latter after bowling the first over.

“We don’t talk much about pace but we share a very good bond,” Mayank said.

“When I bowled my first over, whatever help I got, I shared it with Ashok and Prince as well on what was the best option to attack. We were in a strong condition [position] after the first six overs so [we spoke about] how we can squeeze them further.”

The second T20I between India and Zimbabwe will be played at Harare Sports Club on Saturday.