Hardik Pandya credits MS Dhoni for teaching him to be selfless for the team

Hardik Pandya's inclusion in the Test team had raised many eyebrows with cricket experts terming the 23-year old's inclusion premature. However, Pandya proved his mettle as an all-rounder in the team scoring a fifty in his very first innings while scalping a wicket in the first match at Galle. 

"First time in my life I have not had the 90s butterfly. Otherwise, I don't remember previous centuries, but I used to have butterflies from what I can remember. In today's game when I batted I was in a different zone," he added.

"Obviously my focus is to play my cricket and just become what I can become. Even if I can be 10 per cent of what Kapil Dev was, I will be pretty happy in my life," Pandya said at the press conference at the end of second day's play.

The explosive Pandya was at his best when he smashed Malinda Puspakumara for 26 runs in an over becoming the first Indian batsman to do so in a Test.

"From there I saw the scoreboard and I was batting on 80 and I was like, wow! Then I noticed I was in the zone, I don't usually look at the scoreboard. I don't want to know what's happening around. I just focus on how I can help the innings progress."

Sri Lanka started the second day on the front foot dismissing Wriddhiman Saha early in the day. However, Pandya stole the game away from the hosts' grasp after he built a brilliant 51-run partnership with Kuldeep Yadav before coming out all guns-blazing to power India to 478 despite 400 runs seeming difficult at one point of time.

"When me and Wriddhi (Wriddhiman Saha) went in, we played normally. Once he got out, still Kuldeep (Yadav) was there, and I could take singles with him. Even Shami and Umesh can bat, but you also know that when you have one wicket left, you play a different game; when you have three wickets, you play differently. I just batted according to the situation."

Pandya admitted that his luck has favoured him and he is playing Test cricket at a very early age.

"I am pretty lucky to have such team and such people who are supporting me and backing me all out, and showing the confidence. They have given me all the freedom to play the way I can and that's the best thing to have happened," he said.

"Whenever a kid starts playing in India, he doesn't think of one-day cricket. Test cricket is always the goal. I am not sure about now, but when I was little I always wanted to play Test cricket. The name is Test because it is a difficult format; it tests your patience, fitness, temperament, etc."

"In Test cricket, you need to be disciplined and keep bowling in one place, and eventually the wicket is going to do something. In Ranji Trophy you might get helpful wickets where you get a five-wicket haul in 10 overs as well. But in Test cricket it is different.

"You need to make sure you bowled disciplined lines and play on the patience of the batsmen. One ball might do something, and you get a wicket."