Tag: Rahul Tewatia

  • IPL gives India more finishing options in Dinesh Karthik and Rahul Tewatia

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: IPL form can’t be the sole criteria for a national call-up but Dinesh Karthik and Rahul Tewatia with their stellar shows as finishers for their respective franchises have certainly made a strong case for themselves in the coming months leading up to the T20 World Cup.

    The ICC event in Australia is still more than four months away but the selectors and team management will soon have to decide on their core group of players, starting with the five match home series against South Africa next month.

    The finisher’s job is only gaining significance in the power-packed modern game and the Indian team is definitely in need of players who can go ballistic from ball one.

    In the absence of Hardik Pandya due to fitness issues, the Indian team management tried out Deepak Hooda and Venkatesh Iyer in the middle-order post World Cup debacle last year but they haven’t yet found closure as far as their search is concerned.

    Hardik, who has done well in the IPL in what has been his comeback competition, too has thrown himself back into national contention.

    However, Hooda and Hardik have been batting higher up in the order for their respective IPL teams but are expected to play lower down for the national team.

    Venkatesh has had a tough second year in the IPL and has gone down in the pecking order of finishers.

    With Ravindra Jadeja being the only established finisher in the Indian team, IPL performers like Karthik and Tewatia sensed an opportunity and have made full use of it.

    Tewatia has built a reputation of winning games from improbable situations while Karthik, who had made his India debut way back in 2004, has shown insatiable hunger to make another comeback.

    Former India chief selector MSK Prasad feels both Karthik and Tewatia must be tried in the series against South Africa beginning on June 9 besides calling for Hardik’s return.

    “Hardik, Jaddu, Karthik and Tewatia are my top four for the finisher’s role. DK and Tewatia has been brilliant in this IPL and Hardik has made a good comeback. The World Cup is still some time away but the likes of DK and Tewatia should get their opportunity.

    “If you look at DK, he has consistently done well for India in the T20 format, Nidahas Trophy being the highlight,” Prasad told PTI.

    On Hardik, he said: “He will be one of your main players in Australia where the T20 World Cup is. But I also want to see him bowling regularly. We will need his all-round skills Down Under.”

    Hardik has not been bowling for Gujarat Titans in every game but has bowled closed to 20 overs during the course of the season besides getting crucial runs at number four.

    Prasad’s former colleague in the erstwhile selection committee, Sarandeep Singh, said the Baroda all-rounder has to bowl regularly to be in the scheme of things.

    “He can’t just play as a batter in the side. You lose out on a crucial bowling option that way. DK can be given a go but can he play only as a batter with Rishabh donning the gloves, I am not so sure about it. But he has certainly made a case and he has got all the experience.

    “He also has the ability to change his role if wickets fall in a heap. Tewatia too has done well in the IPL but I doubt if he could replicate his form in Indian conditions in Australia. The bowlers are likely to bounce him out I feel,” said the former India spinner.

    Tewatia had received an India call up last year but failed a fitness test.

    He added that Venkatesh should be persisted even if he is having an ordinary IPL.

    Among other players who should be tried in other roles against South Africa including young pacer Umran Malik, reckons Prasad.

    “Shami and Bumrah are your frontline pacers but you also need a bowler who can regularly clock 150 kmph. Umran has been doing that. It is also heartening to see Kuldeep and Chahal doing well for their IPL and should be back bowling together for India,” said Prasad.

  • IPL gives India more finishing options in Dinesh Karthik and Rahul Tewatia

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: IPL form can’t be the sole criteria for a national call-up but Dinesh Karthik and Rahul Tewatia with their stellar shows as finishers for their respective franchises have certainly made a strong case for themselves in the coming months leading up to the T20 World Cup.

    The ICC event in Australia is still more than four months away but the selectors and team management will soon have to decide on their core group of players, starting with the five match home series against South Africa next month.

    The finisher’s job is only gaining significance in the power-packed modern game and the Indian team is definitely in need of players who can go ballistic from ball one.

    In the absence of Hardik Pandya due to fitness issues, the Indian team management tried out Deepak Hooda and Venkatesh Iyer in the middle-order post World Cup debacle last year but they haven’t yet found closure as far as their search is concerned.

    Hardik, who has done well in the IPL in what has been his comeback competition, too has thrown himself back into national contention.

    However, Hooda and Hardik have been batting higher up in the order for their respective IPL teams but are expected to play lower down for the national team.

    Venkatesh has had a tough second year in the IPL and has gone down in the pecking order of finishers.

    With Ravindra Jadeja being the only established finisher in the Indian team, IPL performers like Karthik and Tewatia sensed an opportunity and have made full use of it.

    Tewatia has built a reputation of winning games from improbable situations while Karthik, who had made his India debut way back in 2004, has shown insatiable hunger to make another comeback.

    Former India chief selector MSK Prasad feels both Karthik and Tewatia must be tried in the series against South Africa beginning on June 9 besides calling for Hardik’s return.

    “Hardik, Jaddu, Karthik and Tewatia are my top four for the finisher’s role. DK and Tewatia has been brilliant in this IPL and Hardik has made a good comeback. The World Cup is still some time away but the likes of DK and Tewatia should get their opportunity.

    “If you look at DK, he has consistently done well for India in the T20 format, Nidahas Trophy being the highlight,” Prasad told PTI.

    On Hardik, he said: “He will be one of your main players in Australia where the T20 World Cup is. But I also want to see him bowling regularly. We will need his all-round skills Down Under.”

    Hardik has not been bowling for Gujarat Titans in every game but has bowled closed to 20 overs during the course of the season besides getting crucial runs at number four.

    Prasad’s former colleague in the erstwhile selection committee, Sarandeep Singh, said the Baroda all-rounder has to bowl regularly to be in the scheme of things.

    “He can’t just play as a batter in the side. You lose out on a crucial bowling option that way. DK can be given a go but can he play only as a batter with Rishabh donning the gloves, I am not so sure about it. But he has certainly made a case and he has got all the experience.

    “He also has the ability to change his role if wickets fall in a heap. Tewatia too has done well in the IPL but I doubt if he could replicate his form in Indian conditions in Australia. The bowlers are likely to bounce him out I feel,” said the former India spinner.

    Tewatia had received an India call up last year but failed a fitness test.

    He added that Venkatesh should be persisted even if he is having an ordinary IPL.

    Among other players who should be tried in other roles against South Africa including young pacer Umran Malik, reckons Prasad.

    “Shami and Bumrah are your frontline pacers but you also need a bowler who can regularly clock 150 kmph. Umran has been doing that. It is also heartening to see Kuldeep and Chahal doing well for their IPL and should be back bowling together for India,” said Prasad.

    NEW DELHI: IPL form can’t be the sole criteria for a national call-up but Dinesh Karthik and Rahul Tewatia with their stellar shows as finishers for their respective franchises have certainly made a strong case for themselves in the coming months leading up to the T20 World Cup.

    The ICC event in Australia is still more than four months away but the selectors and team management will soon have to decide on their core group of players, starting with the five match home series against South Africa next month.

    The finisher’s job is only gaining significance in the power-packed modern game and the Indian team is definitely in need of players who can go ballistic from ball one.googletag.cmd.push(function() {googletag.display(‘div-gpt-ad-8052921-2’); });

    In the absence of Hardik Pandya due to fitness issues, the Indian team management tried out Deepak Hooda and Venkatesh Iyer in the middle-order post World Cup debacle last year but they haven’t yet found closure as far as their search is concerned.

    Hardik, who has done well in the IPL in what has been his comeback competition, too has thrown himself back into national contention.

    However, Hooda and Hardik have been batting higher up in the order for their respective IPL teams but are expected to play lower down for the national team.

    Venkatesh has had a tough second year in the IPL and has gone down in the pecking order of finishers.

    With Ravindra Jadeja being the only established finisher in the Indian team, IPL performers like Karthik and Tewatia sensed an opportunity and have made full use of it.

    Tewatia has built a reputation of winning games from improbable situations while Karthik, who had made his India debut way back in 2004, has shown insatiable hunger to make another comeback.

    Former India chief selector MSK Prasad feels both Karthik and Tewatia must be tried in the series against South Africa beginning on June 9 besides calling for Hardik’s return.

    “Hardik, Jaddu, Karthik and Tewatia are my top four for the finisher’s role. DK and Tewatia has been brilliant in this IPL and Hardik has made a good comeback. The World Cup is still some time away but the likes of DK and Tewatia should get their opportunity.

    “If you look at DK, he has consistently done well for India in the T20 format, Nidahas Trophy being the highlight,” Prasad told PTI.

    On Hardik, he said: “He will be one of your main players in Australia where the T20 World Cup is. But I also want to see him bowling regularly. We will need his all-round skills Down Under.”

    Hardik has not been bowling for Gujarat Titans in every game but has bowled closed to 20 overs during the course of the season besides getting crucial runs at number four.

    Prasad’s former colleague in the erstwhile selection committee, Sarandeep Singh, said the Baroda all-rounder has to bowl regularly to be in the scheme of things.

    “He can’t just play as a batter in the side. You lose out on a crucial bowling option that way. DK can be given a go but can he play only as a batter with Rishabh donning the gloves, I am not so sure about it. But he has certainly made a case and he has got all the experience.

    “He also has the ability to change his role if wickets fall in a heap. Tewatia too has done well in the IPL but I doubt if he could replicate his form in Indian conditions in Australia. The bowlers are likely to bounce him out I feel,” said the former India spinner.

    Tewatia had received an India call up last year but failed a fitness test.

    He added that Venkatesh should be persisted even if he is having an ordinary IPL.

    Among other players who should be tried in other roles against South Africa including young pacer Umran Malik, reckons Prasad.

    “Shami and Bumrah are your frontline pacers but you also need a bowler who can regularly clock 150 kmph. Umran has been doing that. It is also heartening to see Kuldeep and Chahal doing well for their IPL and should be back bowling together for India,” said Prasad.

  • IPL 2022: Rahul Tewatia unfazed by Rs 9 crore price tag, keen to repay faith of Gujarat Titans

    Express News Service

    KOCHI: Rahul Tewatia was an in-demand cricketer during the Indian Premier League mega auction last month with teams entering into a fierce bidding war for the 28-year-old.

    The all-rounder was eventually bagged by the new IPL franchise Gujarat Titans for a hefty price of Rs 9 crore as they fought off interest from Chennai Super Kings.

    The fact that Tewatia’s base price was just Rs 40 lakh is an indication of just how highly the former Rajasthan Royals player was sought after. Tewatia says that he does not feel the pressure of the price tag as it is just an indication that teams have faith in his abilities.

    “My point of view is that, what is the point of taking pressure about these things? The team is showing belief in you and that is why they are ready to spend that kind of money on you. I don’t feel the pressure and it is just a case of trying to repay their faith. I just want to fulfill the role for which I was taken in the team and just work hard,” said Tewatia during a media interaction on Tuesday.

    The fight to sign Tewatia points to the importance that teams place on all-rounders and the Haryana cricketer knows that he will have a crucial role to play for the new franchise. “For every team, the role of an all-rounder is very crucial. Those who bat between six to eight in the order, their role is really important. Because you get very little time to make an impact which can decide matches. So it is a really important role to fulfill in the team and perform according to the situation,” he said.

    Tewatia’s most memorable knock in the IPL was the one for the Royals in Sharjah against Kings XI Punjab. The left-hander had smashed Sheldon Cottrell for five sixes in an over to steer his team to victory from the jaws of defeat.

    Tewatia hopes to produce such moments for Titans as the franchise is looking to make a mark in their maiden appearance in the T20 event.

    “Even though it is a new franchise, the players who make up the team have played a lot of IPL cricket so the team should make a good impression and hopefully do well,” said the leg spinner.

    Hardik Pandya will be leading the Gujarat outfit and there is a lot of curiosity on how the former Mumbai Indians star would fare in a captaincy role.

    “Hardik has plenty of experience in the IPL and has played a lot of cricket for India as well. He has also played under many successful captains like MS Dhoni, Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma and he will take lessons from that and bring his own inputs into the role. He should do well given the amount of cricket and experience he has under his belt,” he added.

  • Play smart, enjoy your game and give 100 per cent: Rajasthan Royals all-rounder Rahul Tewatia

    By IANS

    NEW DELHI: Rajasthan Royals are currently placed at the sixth position in the IPL 2021 points tally and they will have to win both their matches to enter the playoffs.

    Their confidence would be rocket high following their thumping win over mighty Chennai Super Kings but their next encounters are also not easy at all, as the Sanju Samson-led side will face Mumbai Indians on October 5 and Kolkata Knight Riders on October 7.

    However, despite the crunch situation, the Royals look a little relaxed. Day ahead of their crucial tie, all-rounder Rahul Tewatia said that the team is not discussing anything related to the net-run rate or playoff fight.

    “All matches are important for us. We are not thinking anything like we win both the matches and enter the playoffs. We are just taking one match at a time. We want to give our hundred per cent and enjoy the game, like we did in our last match. This is what Kumar Sangakkara (team director) also suggested,” Tewatia said on Monday. “Nothing such as net run rate or where we are standing at the moment (points tally) have been discussed in the team meeting so far.”

    Further talking about their Tuesday’s match against Mumbai, the 28-year-old said the Rohit Sharma-led side is a dangerous team on their given day. “Their middle order is really good, so is their top order. But we will try to play a smart game and win it,” he said.

    The all-rounder further admitted that his performance has not been up to the mark in the season and said he will look to produce a better show to help his team.

    “Yeah, our middle order is struggling and I take responsibility for that. I know my performances weren’t up to the mark with regards to the high expectations. However, I will put in the effort to improve the output in the next matches.”