« Back to article

Print this article

'Playing under Dhoni was a learning experience'

After a dream debut against minnows Zimbabwe, pacer Mohit Sharma said he had been preparing for this moment for a long time.

- Pace ace Mohit a hit on debut!

Mohit's 2/26 in 10 overs, including three maidens, in the fourth one-dayer against Zimbabwe was crucial to India's comprehensive nine-wicket win on Thursday.

"Yeah, it all feels like a dream," Mohit said.

"But I have worked on my bowling and it is showing. I am ready to do well in whatever opportunity I am going to get. I was just focusing on keeping things simple and sticking to basics. I did not want to try too many things and it worked for me today," he added.

'It is difficult to bowl in Powerplays'

Mohit, who came into the spotlight with impressive performances in the IPL this season, said it was not easy to send down miserly spells during powerplays.

"It is difficult to bowl in Powerplays but we work hard in practice sessions," Mohit explained.

"We create match situations during training and bowl a lot and that has helped in matches. And that is why we don't feel much pressure in matches.

"Playing under Mahi bhai (regular skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni) and in pressure conditions has taught me a lot. I am just carrying that experience into the international level," he said.

'I have learnt a lot from bowling coach Joe Dawes'

Mohit said he is content with the way he is bowling right now and is not looking to improvise much for the time being.

"After coming into the Indian team I have learnt a lot from bowling coach Joe Dawes. It's just about sticking to the basics and working on your strengths and improving on that," he said.

"As far as learning new things in bowling, I can do that later and not in match situations. Now I want to focus on the next game and doing well in that as well," he added.