Mumbai Indians' (MI) wicketkeeper batter Ryan Rickelton said that their captain Hardik Pandya, had asked the entire team to raise the intensity ahead of their fixture against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR). MI beat Kolkata by 8 wickets to register first win of the season.
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00:00Yeah, obviously we played a few warm-up games with him, keeping to him and obviously batting
00:05against him in the nets. He's a really, really nice bowler and yeah, obviously got an opportunity
00:11today. He can swing the new ball and he executed his plan really, really well. So, really happy
00:17for him, the group's really happy for him. But yeah, it's cool that he got, like I said,
00:22an opportunity and really, like I said, the group's really chuffed that he managed to get
00:26a man-of-the-match performance today. He's got some great skills, so looking forward to seeing
00:30how he goes in the rest of the comp. To be honest, I don't sit in the bowling meeting,
00:36so I can't really tell you, but based on the patterns I could see from behind the stumps,
00:40he obviously executed it towards a certain pattern. So yeah, that was quite distinct to
00:46notice from behind the stumps. So like I said, really chuffed for him. He bowled really,
00:49really well tonight and he deserves the man-of-the-match.
00:57What kind of confidence do you want to see?
00:59Obviously a massive relief, in all honesty. The first two games were tricky on some tough
01:05wickets, but to get out here in Mumbai and obviously have Spencer turn me inside out
01:11was quite a tough battle to get through. But once I managed to get through that, it's obviously
01:16just really pleasing to get a score, but more relief than anything. And obviously to get
01:20two points on the board is great for the team.
01:23How do you defend the pitch?
01:24How would I?
01:25How did you defend the pitch?
01:28Harder than I anticipated it to be. I knew it was going to swing around and do a bit.
01:31I didn't expect it to do that much for a period of time. But when we were bowling,
01:36obviously the guys executed quite well and it was a bit sticky up front. Actually,
01:40throughout the whole 40 overs, I think it was a bit sticky. But I think our bowlers
01:44adjusted really well and our batters adjusted really well too, to obviously get the win
01:49and get us on the board.
01:51Ryan, well played. First few matches, as you said, a huge relief after you scored a
01:56half century today. Was there any pressure on you, given that you did not score a lot
02:00of runs in the first couple of games heading into this match? Plus, what was the kind of
02:04communication from Mahdi Fateh or the leadership or the coaching staff?
02:10I don't think there was any pressure. I think it's more internal pressure that comes
02:13with it. Obviously, you want to, you know, you're opening the batting from the Mumbai
02:18Indian to throw a charmer. There's always going to be pressure internally and obviously
02:21externally as well. So just for myself, I obviously wanted to contribute to the team
02:24and add to that. But Hardik was more emphasising, you know, today, raise intensity. This is
02:30our home ground. We need to be better. And obviously, we couldn't be 0 from 3. So yeah,
02:34I think today we ramped it up a level. Like I said, the intensity was better, the fielding.
02:39I know we dropped a couple of catches, but it was better as well. And obviously, the
02:42batting came through nicely as well. So I think that's kind of, we've got a base now
02:47and we can try, obviously, just keep taking steps after it.
02:51Brian, you've obviously played for my Cape Town back home. Do you feel like that's been
02:55a useful grounding to sort of ease the transition into IPL with maybe a few familiar faces in
03:00the squad and support staff?
03:02Yeah, definitely. I think it's all the support staff in all honesty. Yeah, it's been a nice
03:06introduction into obviously the group, the family. Obviously, meeting Akash and everyone
03:11as well. It's been a nice intro. It's not just coming in blind. So yeah, it's been an easier
03:16transition. But I think obviously the IPL is a different beast on its own. So I think
03:20to mentally work my head around that is a bit of a different one for me. And trying
03:26to obviously just adapt to the group. And luckily, I've got a few familiar faces around
03:30as well. It makes that transition a bit easier.
03:37So basically, there's a couple of matches that you played. What was going through your
03:43mind in terms of who you're looking to? What was the mindset going into this match? And
03:50the first time you played at Wankhede, how was that?
03:53I was just trying to not chop it on in all honesty. But yeah, I was a bit nervous in
03:58all honesty. I just really wanted to get a score and just ease the nerves down. But it
04:04was a relatively low total, so I knew I could afford a bit of time and just give myself
04:08this extra couple of balls to try and get through. But yeah, I think I got one or two
04:14boundaries away and it just got the scoreboard going. I think I was north of six at a stage
04:18as well. So yeah, I was a bit nervous. But once I knew, I felt like if I could face 18
04:24to 20 balls, I'd at least have some kind of impact on the game. And luckily, I managed
04:29just to get through. And it wasn't as fluent as I would have liked it to be, but I'll take it.
04:35Did the coverage that was there in the stadium today sort of tell you?
04:38Yeah, incredible. It's my first game here at the Wankhede. It's special to see obviously
04:43how the colours and how everyone gets around the team and obviously the players as well.
04:48So yeah, it was a great experience. I think that's why a lot of players play for the
04:53fans. And it was awesome to be out there tonight and experience it.
04:57When you were keeping and facing Ashwini Kumar in the camp before the IPL started,
05:06was there any specific kind of delivery that impressed you? Because today,
05:09the way he was getting batters out, he was hitting the top of middle and off.
05:14And he's also said to have a really good yorker.
05:16Yeah, he's a lot quicker than I think people recognise at first. So I think that's a great
05:21attribute he has. And he can swing the new ball. I know it's obviously quite tough. We got two
05:26specialist swing bowlers with the new ball as well. But to have that second plan without that
05:31swing factor was really impressive. Like I say, he's a lot quicker than you think. And he rushes
05:36you a little bit lower as well. So yeah, he's a great addition obviously to the group. And I think
05:41the wicker can suit him. And yeah, I'm looking forward to seeing if he gets an opportunity with
05:46a new ball to see that other set of skills come through. But yeah, he's a nice find,
05:51I guess, for MI. And we're looking forward to seeing how he goes.
06:00Yeah, like you batted with Roy for three innings. From your position,
06:08he's been like a number two at the Olympic Games. From your position, how do you analyse his batting?
06:17Right. I definitely shouldn't be commenting on his batting. But he's a phenomenal player.
06:22Like the opportunity to open the batting with him is incredible for me. Just the way he talks
06:28about the game and kind of the stuff he's looking for and the way he can help me as well is great.
06:33Like I say, we know he's a phenomenal player. So there's no doubt that he's going to come right
06:38really, really soon. And when he does, hopefully I'm in and looking forward to obviously
06:43playing with him and watching him do it instead of playing against him.
06:47And you refer to Roy again as a different beast. In what way is it so bigger than possibly
06:56Azzedminti and M&E?
06:58Yeah, I think obviously naturally there's just a lot more pressure. The standard is incredibly high
07:06and the conditions are all changing. I see a year ago on television and teams are getting 260 and
07:14you think it's a free-for-all, but you come here and it's actually not that easy. And different
07:18grounds obviously have their unique characteristics. So I just think the pressure factor obviously
07:23internally is big, but externally is huge. And again, you're playing with some of the world's
07:29best players, not just in this team, but obviously around the country. So that extra pressure is
07:35there and it's hard. I'm not going to lie. It's hard. So obviously just trying to find my way
07:42through that and try to adjust my game in order to give me the best chance of being successful
07:46for the team.
07:48Ryan, at the mid-innings break, when you're looking for your first win, the team in the
07:54opposition has scored a low total. You would want to have that win and you would want to
07:59have that win quickly because it also helps to keep a run rate in a healthy position. So
08:06what was the team's plans or team talk at the mid-innings break?
08:11I think before the game, Hardik just asked us to raise the intensity and how we were
08:14going to play. So at the halfway stage, Mihajlo and him just emphasised keep raising that
08:21intensity, be ruthless. Just because it's a lower score, go into your shell and try to
08:27work your way around it. So I think that's kind of the attitude. Obviously, you're always
08:31chasing points, but if you can obviously get some run rates, that helps as well. So I think
08:36the emphasis was just to try and be positive, take the right option, back yourself with
08:40no doubt and play the game how you see it. There's no judgement from the side. They trust
08:47the players in the middle to make the right decisions. So I think he just emphasised intensity
08:52and have a good attitude and obviously look to take the game on.