Domestic season helped me prepare well for IPL season: Khaleel

You could see the genuineness in Khaleel Ahmed’s face, when he stepped up for the post-match press conference. He doesn’t mince words, he doesn’t sugarcoat anything and most certainly isn't afraid to call a spade a spade. 

After all, the 26-year-old from Tonk has gone through a lot in the past few years, with regular injuries hampering his form. But over the last six months, the left-arm pacer has put his heart and soul into representing Rajasthan at the domestic level, where he has honed his skills to a completely different level. 

He ended the Ranji Trophy with 14 wickets in six appearances for his side and picked up eight wickets at the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy as well, showing his fitness levels. Having put the hard yard in already before the start of the Indian Premier League season, the 26-year-old is reaping the rewards. 

In the clash against Chennai Super Kings, the left-arm seamer put on a display in the powerplay, where he removed their in-form openers Ruturaj Gaikwad and Rachin Ravindra, in a spell that was nearly ‘unplayable’. His figures read 2/9 after his first three overs in the clash, following up where he left the other day. 

"I was waiting for a long time to perform for the team. When I started, I realised I was getting good swing, so I just backed it up and didn't allow the opposition any chance,” Khaleel said in the post-match press conference. 

Khaleel attributes a lot of his success to the hard work and the extra yards that he put into his own game at the domestic level. 

“The more you play, the more you understand your game. The same happened with me as I have been playing continuously for six months, I got to understand my game plans, my body and managing to play in small niggles. It all came due to the domestic season, it gave me good confidence before coming into the IPL and it's been a great feeling,” he added. 

Delhi didn’t start the season on a good note, losing both their clashes against Punjab Kings and Rajasthan Royals. But they made a strong comeback with a 20-run win over defending champions, CSK. Khaleel insisted that the win gives the team a lot of motivation heading into their next few fixtures. 

"When you lose back-to-back matches, you feel bad. To be honest, there's a lot of happiness due to this win."

"When you win, it gives you good momentum, the win makes you understand the good aspects of your game and how you can learn. This win gave us a lot of answers to our questions, and it will make things easier on how to approach our next games," he stated. 

The 26-year-old also showed a lot of happiness when asked about Rishabh Pant’s return. Khaleel, who has spent a lot of his cricketing days alongside Pant, couldn’t hide his joy, stating that Pant is his ‘younger brother’ and there’s a special happiness in the dressing room after Pant returned to the IPL. 

“He (Pant) is my younger brother, we have played cricket together since U-14, U-19. He is like a brother to me, I have special happiness for him, not just for making a comeback but the way he is performing. It gives me extra happiness just to see him perform in such a manner. The way he scored today as well, we will all celebrate with him after this press conference,” he concluded. 

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