Mayank says Rahul bhai told me to make it ‘big’
Mumbai, Dec. 3: Mayank Agarwal knows that he might be confined to the sidelines once K.L. Rahul and Rohit Sharma are back in the mix but what has helped him stay focussed is words of wisdom from coach Rahul Dravid, who told him to control what’s in his domain. Agarwal, who has been in and out of the squad in recent times, scored a fine 120 under pressure on the opening day of the second Test before which he watched legendary Sunil Gavaskar’s batting videos and slightly changed his stance.
“When I was picked, Rahul bhai spoke to me. He asked me to control what is in my hands and said, ‘go out there and give it your best’,” Agarwal said.
“He had told me ‘When you get set, make it big’. I am happy to have capitalised on the start that I had. But that message was very clear from Rahul bhai, that I should make it count,” he added.
The Bangalore based opener lamented that it was his misfortune that he got hit on the head during a net session in England and then there was nothing in his hands.
Gavaskar on the day during his commentary session spoke about how he had advised Agarwal to reduce his pronounced back-lift into a shorter one and the opener said that as of now, he is trying to ape the iconic former India captain’s side-on stance. “He told me that I should consider keeping the bat a bit low initially in my innings. I have a tendency to hold it high. I couldn’t make that adjustment in this short period of time. When he was saying, I noticed his shoulder position and basically picked up that I need to be more side on.”