Anukul Roy Reveals How the Tips of Mahendra Singh Dhoni Helped him During the U-19 World Cup

One of the biggest takeaways for the Indian Junior team from the ICC U-19 World Cup is the performance of left-arm spinner Anukul Roy who is also an able lower middle-order batsman.

Figures of 1/36, 5/14, 4/20, 1/14, 1/11 and 2/32 are sublime figures in any form of cricket, and if that has come in a World Cup, the feat looks even better. 14 wickets in six games at a stupendous average of 9.07 per wicket and a strike rate of 3.84. He ended the tournament being the joint highest wicket-taker.

While it was a dream journey for Anukul in the World Cups, he had doubts at one point whether he will board the flight to New Zealand as an ankle injury almost prevented him from taking part in the tournament. However, the team management and Rahul Dravid backed him, and he repaid the faith shown in him by the selectors with some exceptional performances in the tournament.

Following his return from New Zealand, Anukul spoke on different aspects which also included that how the interactions with Mahendra Singh Dhoni helped him become a better player.

When asked what he did differently from others that he ended the tournament as the leading wicket-taker, Anukul said,

“I focus on how the wicket is behaving. If it’s a flat wicket, I have to adjust my lengths accordingly. So, on many occasions, I try and bowl defensively, set one-side dominated fields and dry the runs, it increases my chances to take wickets. So, I don’t know about the others, but I stick to this (approach). And sir loag bhee bolate rehte the (coaches also used to tell me), what is happening. At times, there were some problems over where to bowl and where not to bowl. But one has to manage as these are the big matches. So, practice karate rehnaa padataa thaa taake kuch idhar udhar naa ho (So, I kept on practicing to avoid any plans going haywire).”

Anukul stemmed the run flow in the middle overs during the final against Australia. So when asked whether he changes his line and length accordingly or stick to the pre-decided strategy when the batsmen start playing unorthodox shots, Anukul said,

“In the beginning, it was about line and length, but when he started playing shots, there were some runs. But I kept trying and then usne galti kiyaa and out bhee hua (he committed a mistake and got out). But one need not think much, batsmen jyaada sochate hai (batsmen think a lot). Unko agar single milataa hai, toh chance kam rehataa hai out hone kaa. Par boundary agar aate rehtaa hai, toh unko out karnekaa chance jyaadaa rehtaa hai. So, woh jyaadaa strike bhee nahee change kar paate aur set bhee nahee ho paate. So, boundary se koi dikkat nahee hotaa tha, par who single le rahe the. Wicket thodaa batting wicket thaa. Par fielders nee bhee support achha kiyaa (If they keep getting singles, the chances of them getting out are less. But if they are hitting boundaries, there are more opportunities to take wickets as they are not able to rotate strike and don’t settle down. Hence, there is no pressure even if they hit a four. (But) in the final, they were taking singles and the pitch too was batsman-friendly. But there was a lot of support from the fielders).

His next question was New Zealand being swing friendly how challenging it was to bowl his orthodox spinners in such conditions.

“I could not play in the Asia Cup (in November 2017) as I was injured. So, it was difficult to bowl the way I used to bowl before. But I had a good practice and (played) practice matches. In the first game (against Australia in the World Cup), I did not have a good outing. But I got to learn about what’s happening in the games and how I needed to go about my plan in regards with length, position of my bowling hand etc. It is vital. New Zealand main jyaada paataa wickets hee milataa hai (In New Zealand, there are more flat tracks). So, it was clear in my head that we are not going to get spin-friendly pitches in New Zealand),” was Anukul’s reply.

When asked whether the three left-arm spinners Abhishek Sharma, Shiva Singh and he had any specific plans for the final, Anukul said,

“We decided to bowl in partnership. If one is not conceding runs from one end, the other won’t concede many from the other end as well. It builds pressure on the batsmen and then they try and do different things and that increases our chances to get wickets. So, the three of us decided to bowl as a bunch. If one is bowling dot balls, the other will also do the same. So, it helped us a lot.”

When asked how did the inputs of bowling coach Paras Mhambrey help him Anukul conceded he helped them a lot during practice and showed them how to bowl in the slog overs and many more.

“He helped us a lot during the practice. How to bowl, what to bowl and from where to bowl and how it will have an impact, how to bowl in the slog overs, and what your hand position should be etc. It is very important,” he said.

Meanwhile, Anukul’s next target is to play well for Jharkhand in the upcoming Vijay Hazare Trophy. On asked whether he got a chance to speak with former Indian skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Anukul said,

“No. Abhee tak mile bhee nahee toh (baat nahee hui). Wo jaanate hai toh, woh saamane se milate hai tab baat hotee hai. Woh bataate rehte hai ke disciplined raho. Achha bowling chalate rehtaa hai toh bolate hai body lagaaoge toh chhotaa giranekaa chance kam hogaa. Toh wo cheez kaa hame bahot help huaa, aur chhotaa bhee abhee kam gir rahaa hai. Toh achha helpful lag rahaa hai. Confident lag rahaa hai. (We have not met or spoken after the win. But he knows me so whenever we meet in person, he keeps telling me to stay disciplined. You are bowling well. If you put more body into your deliveries, the chances of bowling short will also go down. So, that advice helped me a lot and I am bowling less number of short deliveries. So, I am feeling good, I am feeling confident).

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