The last few weeks have been eventful for Baba Indrajith. After being picked by Kolkata Knight Riders for Rs 20 lakh at the IPL auctions, the 27-year-old has begun the Ranji Trophy season with a bang — scoring back-to-back hundreds.
Indrajith has always been blessed with the gift of timing, but in the last couple of innings one can see a shift in the way he has approached his innings. There is a lot of power-hitting in his game. Be it the 149-ball 117 against Delhi or the 141-ball 127 versus Chhattisgarh, Indrajith hasn’t shied away from going for his shots. “Earlier, I would hold back my urge to play a particular shot, but that’s not the case anymore,” Indrajith told TOI.
Indrajith credits the freedom with which he has gone about his business to the time he spent last summer with RX Murali — Mayank Agarwal‘s long-time coach — in Bengaluru. “I felt I was at a stage where I needed to add a new dimension to my game. There was a perception that I am more suited to red-ball cricket, but I was keen to be a player who could excel in all formats of the game. I had heard a lot of good things about Murali and wanted to train under him,” Indrajith said.
Indrajith spent hours mastering range hitting, adding new shots to his arsenal. He did weight training in order to get stronger. To top that, Indrajith also sharpened his wicket-keeping skills. “I had done wicket-keeping on a few occasions in first-class cricket before. But I spent more time on it last year in order to give my game a wholesome look. Subsequently, I kept wickets during the Tamil Nadu Premier League and that gave me confidence,” Indrajith added.
When he was overlooked for the Syed Mushtaq Ali T20s this season, it came as a blow. “I was disappointed not to have been part of the T20 side. But I didn’t want to dwell on it for long and continued to train as hard as I could,” said Indrajith, who made a comeback to the side at the Vijay Hazare Trophy where Tamil Nadu finished runners-up.
Just days after the Vijay Hazare Trophy, Indrajith had impressed the KKR scouts during a trial in Mumbai with his 25-ball 60. Indrajith had even sent clippings of his wicket-keeping to the KKR management that more or less convinced them to pick him at the auction. “I am giving more importance to keeping than I did earlier. After each practice session this season, I have spent time doing my keeping drills,” said Indrajith.
Indrajith has always been blessed with the gift of timing, but in the last couple of innings one can see a shift in the way he has approached his innings. There is a lot of power-hitting in his game. Be it the 149-ball 117 against Delhi or the 141-ball 127 versus Chhattisgarh, Indrajith hasn’t shied away from going for his shots. “Earlier, I would hold back my urge to play a particular shot, but that’s not the case anymore,” Indrajith told TOI.
Indrajith credits the freedom with which he has gone about his business to the time he spent last summer with RX Murali — Mayank Agarwal‘s long-time coach — in Bengaluru. “I felt I was at a stage where I needed to add a new dimension to my game. There was a perception that I am more suited to red-ball cricket, but I was keen to be a player who could excel in all formats of the game. I had heard a lot of good things about Murali and wanted to train under him,” Indrajith said.
Indrajith spent hours mastering range hitting, adding new shots to his arsenal. He did weight training in order to get stronger. To top that, Indrajith also sharpened his wicket-keeping skills. “I had done wicket-keeping on a few occasions in first-class cricket before. But I spent more time on it last year in order to give my game a wholesome look. Subsequently, I kept wickets during the Tamil Nadu Premier League and that gave me confidence,” Indrajith added.
When he was overlooked for the Syed Mushtaq Ali T20s this season, it came as a blow. “I was disappointed not to have been part of the T20 side. But I didn’t want to dwell on it for long and continued to train as hard as I could,” said Indrajith, who made a comeback to the side at the Vijay Hazare Trophy where Tamil Nadu finished runners-up.
Just days after the Vijay Hazare Trophy, Indrajith had impressed the KKR scouts during a trial in Mumbai with his 25-ball 60. Indrajith had even sent clippings of his wicket-keeping to the KKR management that more or less convinced them to pick him at the auction. “I am giving more importance to keeping than I did earlier. After each practice session this season, I have spent time doing my keeping drills,” said Indrajith.