Relate to MS Dhoni because of a similar mindset, proclaims Manish Pandey
Manish Pandey has revealed that he has great admiration for his fellow army-fanatic Dhoni, as the duo shared a similar kind of interest growing up. Pandey further added that coming from an army family, he wanted to join the army but cricket became the default option after he played for Karnataka.
Manish Pandeyâs rise from a springy teenager, who was known for becoming the first Indian to score a century in the Indian Premier League to the confines of the Indian cricket team, where he managed to find a permanent slot, has been well documented. His debut in the 2015 Zimbabwe series, when MS Dhoni led the side, came at a time when India needed a solid middle-order batsman but Pandey has since become more of a specialist fielder at crucial positions, with his knocks being far and few in between.Â
The lack of opportunities, however, hasnât dented the man from Uttarakhand, who moved his base to Karnataka with his parents very early in his life, as he grabbed whatever few chances he got in life. That he played with another glorious Uttrakhand-origin legendary Indian cricketer MS Dhoni helped his cause as the duo related to each other in a much better way.
"I can relate to MS because he has that kind of mindset which I know I can talk to him freely. I can talk to him about anything. The way he speaks about certain things about the game and even the lifestyle, I relate to it. Sometimes, we have sat and spoken about the Army and the things that we have done. Luckily, he was there in Zimbabwe and he was the captain. It was quite easy for me to go to him. I had also played a couple of IPL games against him. So, I knew him a bit. All in all, he was very helpful," Pandey told Cricbuzz.
Pandey comes from an army background, with his father moving his base way too much in his life as a military professional. Cricket was a pastime for him, with his father asking his fellow basemen to bowl to him as a kid, but it became a serious pursuit when he made his Karnataka debut after helping India win the Under-19 World Cup in 2008.
"It was my dad's dream. I never thought I'll become a cricketer when I was a kid. Dad was the one who used to bowl, and he would get the other Jawaans to come and help us out. It was a good time there, great learning experiences. As an army kid, the first thing you have in your mind is that you must join the Army. That's the basic idea you have, you get attracted to that which I wanted a lot too. But after playing for state, the dream changed to playing international cricket and to make a name for myself," the 30-year-old said.Â