IPL 2020 | Helps when someone makes you feel important while not playing, states Shahbaz Nadeem

11/04/2020

Shahbaz Nadeem hasn't been a regular for SRH since joining the side but stated that it really helps when someone makes you feel important when you are warming the bench. Nadeem was adjudged Man of the Match in the Tuesday game against Mumbai Indians, which SRH won comfortably by 10 wickets.

SRH spinner Shahbaz Nadeem might not have been a regular in the Hyderabad team but he has performed exceptionally well in the last two games to make his place in XI his own as he has put his hands up and performed brilliantly when the team's back was put against the wall. Against RCB, when he dismissed AB de Villiers, it turned the tide for SRH and so was the case yesterday, when his double strike in two deliveries turned the game completely as he got rid of Suryakumar Yadav and Krunal Pandya in the 12th over and as a result, MI could merely manage 149, which was never enough.

Reflecting on his performance (2/19), the left-arm spinner stated it feels great to contribute for the team in such a big game. He also credited SRH pacers for doing well after Bhuvneshwar Kumar was injured earlier.

"It always feel good when you perform for the team in a big game. As a player of the team, it felt good. We felt a little pressure but we have won last three games and had the momentum, took it just like another game. Everyone did their job if all do well, which we did. After Bhuvi was ruled out, other pacers have done great," Nadeem asserted in the post-match press conference.

Warming the bench is never easy as it leads to many insecurities in the mind of the players. But, that is where good man-management comes to play. In SRH, the likes of VVS Laxman and Muttiah Muralitharan have done an exceptional job in making each and every player feel important whether they play in the XI regularly or not, something that Nadeem also echoed.

"It feels great to beat a team like MI and beating them gives a lot of encouragement to the team. We have been training hard and the likes of Murali, Laxman, everyone is good and they motivate each and every player whether you play or not. When you are not playing, it helps you when someone makes you feel important."

SRH will now take on RCB in the Eliminator on Friday in Dubai.