Lucknow: Young Delhi Capitals batter Sameer Rizvi grabbed the the opportunity to bat at number four with both hands and said his only focus now is to maintain the consistency going forward in the IPL.
Rizvi gave ample display of his talent, coming in as an ‘Impact Player’ to help Delhi Capitals get past Lucknow Super Giants by six wickets after a shaky start here on Wednesday.
Chasing 142, DC were reduced to 26 for 4 within first five overs but Rizvi (70 not out off 47 balls), coming in for T Natarajan, conjured an unbroken 119-run stand for the fifth wicket with the seasoned Tristan Stubbs (39 not out off 32 balls) to chase down the target in just 17.1 overs.
Rizvi showed exemplary maturity during his knock and hit five fours and four sixes on a tricky track.
“Coaches told me before that you will play at No.4 position and we will back you. You just play your natural, positive game,” said the 22-year-old Uttar Pradesh cricketer.
“Whenever I play for UP or in UPT20 league, I bat at no.4 and if you get to bat at the same position in IPL it gives a lot of confidence.
It is a big opportunity for me and they (coaches) are also giving me freedom to play my natural game. So I just make my mindset to grab these opportunities.”