India pacer Arshdeep Singh.
Credit: PTI Photo
New York: He is wreaking havoc with the ball these days but India pacer Arshdeep Singh is not quite satisfied and wants to become a reliable lower-order batter as well, for which he is putting in the hard yards with batting coach Vikram Rathour.
Arshdeep was lethal in India's seven-wicket win over the plucky USA team as he snared four wickets for a mere nine runs in the T20 World Cup group stage match on Wednesday. It was India's third successive victory which guided the side into the Super Eight stage.
"We are always learning, always trying to get better at all the skills, be it bowling, batting, or fielding, because you never know when the team needs those runs," Arshdeep, who was adjudged Player of the Match, said in the post-game media interaction.
"It can be two runs, four runs, anything. So, you just have to give your best. And I am trying to work as hard as possible with Vikram Bhai regarding my batting as well," he added.
Arshdeep came in at No.9 in the high-voltage game against Pakistan here on June 9, scoring nine off 13 balls before being run out. The left-arm pacer said he insisted on going ahead of Jasprit Bumrah in that match.
"...Jassi Bhai (Bumrah) was supposed to go before me, but I just went in after asking Rohit (Sharma). They were surprised with it, but I told them I will go up regardless of whatever you say," he revealed.
"I will go at nine because I faced the quickest bowlers in the last game. So yeah, that's the plan now. I am very confident about my batting. And be it fielding or bowling, you just try to keep getting better," he said.
Speaking about the tournament, Arshdeep said adapting to the conditions across varied venues will be crucial to success.
India played their first three games here and will now travel to Lauderhill, Florida for their final Group A match against Canada on Saturday, following which the tournament will shift to the Caribbean.
"The main thing is how we adapt to the conditions and to the situations. If there is help in the wicket, we try to get early wickets and restrict them (opponents) to a low total and if we are batting first, we try to make as many as possible and give the bowlers good enough chance to restrict the opposition," he said.
the 25-year-old said he was pleased with his bowling performance on Wednesday which helped India restrict USA to 110/8. Asked if the dressing room is on a high after three successive wins, Arshdeep said the players are trying to stay steady irrespective of results.
"...the emotions stay the same...So yeah, just try to be stable enough, whether we win, whether we lose, and whether we have a good day or a bad day," he said.