‘Smarter mindset, stronger game’: Dube on transformation

Visakhapatnam: On a clement Vizag night, Shivam Dube underlined his growing comfort against pace bowling during his 23-ball 65 blitz against New Zealand, and the India all-rounder attributed the upgrade to an improved “mindset” that made him a “smarter” cricketer.

Of course, Dube’s 29-run barrage against leg-spinner Ish Sodhi will hog the limelight, but equally important were the three sixes he fetched against pacers Jacob Duffy and Matt Henry. It was a clear statement that he can no longer be kept quiet by simply bringing in a pacer, and many oppositions will be squirming in the planning room with that new angle in Dube’s batting.

But for the man himself, the improvement was because of the regular chance he is getting in top-flight cricket.

“It’s just the hard work which I’m doing. I’m getting better with my mindset because I’m playing all those matches and batting in that situation. So, I know what’s going to happen, what are the main things which a bowler is going to come to me,” Dube said in the post-match press conference here.

Dube has also got regular chances to bowl in this series, though he was not used here because India stuck to their five frontline bowlers, as even Hardik Pandya did not get to bowl.

“That’s the key point for my batting and bowling as well. I’m bowling thanks to Gauti bhai (Gautam Gambhir) and Surya bhai (Suryakumar Yadav). They have given me the bowling opportunity. So, when you bowl, you become a little smart. So, I’m working on that as well and trying to develop some more skills,” he added.

The regular game time, Dube admitted, has made him a lot “smarter” as a cricketer in the last few months. “Yes, I worked really hard, but I have got the opportunity to bowl, bat, and do everything in the match. So, there is something called experience and that has come to me and that is going in the right direction. There are many things people upgrade. “All the players, the spinners, fast bowlers, the teams upgrade themselves. So, I can’t be the same. I try to be a little better, smarter in the next.”

Dube believes his improved comfort levels against fast bowlers helps him put more pressure on the opposition.

“It’s really important, it’s about the matchup. So, they want me to hit spinners. That is my role to get the strike-rate high in the middle overs. That is what I always try. It’s just not about the spinners, but fast bowlers as well. “But yeah, definitely there is something where I know that this (hitting against spin) is my strength.”