Aniket Choudhary shares ABD's advice that cost RCB the game against MI
Aniket Choudhary revealed that AB de Villiers advice got him hit for a maximum on the last delivery of the 18th over. The match was set for a close finish when MI needed 30 runs off the last 3 overs but after Hardik Pandya smashed Choudhary for a six it was easy pickings for the home side.
Royal Challengers Bangalore continued their losing streak with another 5-wicket loss at the hands of Mumbai Indians and with that loss, all the bleak hopes of the side making it to the playoffs came to an end. The only positive for the side this season has been their bowling and Aniket Choudhary has proved his might with the ball in the rare opportunity that was offered to the paceman.
Choudhary bowled with impactful precision against the Mumbai Indians yesterday and was given the responsibility to bowl the important 18th over for his side. He surely did what he was expected to and gave away just 5 runs off as many deliveries. The Rajasthan bowler lost his concentration on the 6th delivery and bowled a wide. Before bowling the final legal delivery, Choudhary went up to AB de Villiers for advice on how to bowl the final one so he could end the over on a high note and shift the momentum towards the RCB side.
The South African advised him to fire in a full-length delivery as he had already bowled four slower ones. The next ball decided the feat of the game when Hardik Pandya dispatched a full
“I was wondering whether to bowl him (Hardik) the slower one or the fast one. Maybe it was a match-changing point. So I went to AB and asked him ‘what should I bowl?’ And he said ‘maybe he’s ready for the slower one, so I think you should go with the hard length.’ And when someone as great as AB tells
Despite the game-costing advice from AB, Choudhary still adores the South African for backing his bowling skills all the time.
“In the last training session, I was practising with AB and he said I was bowling really well and that it didn’t matter what happened in the last game. It doesn’t mean you didn’t bowl well when things don’t go your way. In this match also, he was backing me from the first ball,” added Aniket Choudhary.
The tall Rajasthan paceman caught the eye of skipper Virat Kohli while he was bowling to the Indian batsmen in nets during their Test series against Australia. He was bagged by the RCB side for a whopping 2 crores at the auction this year and hasn't looked back since.
He recalled his time bowling in the nets to the Indian Test batsmen.
“It was a very good experience (bowling in the nets to the Indian batsmen), if you are bowling to top Indian batsmen and getting them out, that’s where I got noticed by Virat. Once you bowl to the best and get them out, I don’t think there is a better way of gaining confidence than that. After that, whichever domestic competition you go, like when I played Ranji Trophy, I was very confident. It appeared a lot easier then,” Choudhary said.
RCB's poor performance this season did not seem to perturb the IPL newbie as he noted that with each good performance his side gains confidence which would help them in the next season.
“Definitely, it’s (IPL) a big platform for me to learn. First time I am getting to play in IPL. I have been learning a lot this season as am getting to play with some of the big names. We are out of contention (for
AB de Villiers holds the record for the fastest 50, fastest 100 and fastest 150 in One-Day Internationals.
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