Experience of being at the World Cup was a memory to treasure, says Mayank Agarwal
Mayank Agarwal, despite not featuring in a single game at the 2019 World Cup, is happy with the time he got to spend with the squad. When Agarwal, who hadn’t yet played an ODI, was called up as backup to the squad ahead of the more experienced Ambati Rayudu, it came as a shock to many.
2019 has been a strange year for Mayank Agarwal. Despite his excellent domestic season, young Prithvi Shaw was called up to the Test squad to play in Australia ahead of him. Then, Shaw got injured ahead of the first Test during a practice game, and the opportunity fell into his lap.
And boy, did he take full advantage. In three innings, he had scores of 76, 42 and 77, showing one and all that he has the potential to be the No.1 opener for India in the future.
However, an even bigger surprise awaited him at the 2019 World Cup, as he was called up as a replacement for the injured Vijay Shankar. Despite not featuring in the playing XI, Agarwal took home some rich memories.
“Being part of the ODI team and getting the experience of being at the World Cup was a memory to treasure for me. There was a lot to learn from and good that I managed to spend some time with them,” Agarwal told CricketNext.
The 28-year-old is now focused on preparing himself for the India ‘A’ game against the West Indies ‘A’ for an unofficial Test before he joins the Indian squad for the two-Test series.
“There was a lot to learn from Australia and I have incorporated that into my game. I am practicing and training every day, preparing for the West Indies as it is going to be my first Test trip to the West Indies. It’ll be great to play a couple of games before and experience of playing there before hand will come in handy. I have heard the tracks are not that easy. Never really been there, so I’ll assess the situation after I get there and play on those tracks,” he said.
In fact, Agarwal has been working so hard, that he hits the gym five days a week during the off-season alone.
“I train almost five days a week at the gym even during the off-season. I have been doing a lot of strength training as well as some power-training before I head to the West Indies. The off-seasons give me time to build on my strength,” Agarwal added.
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