CHENNAI: In short, Yash Dhull flew directly from the West Indies where he led India to the U-19 World Cup to Guwahati to make his debut in first class cricket for Delhi. There were, of course, a few sporadic breaks in between for felicitation and functions. For a 19-year-old, a shift to red from white ball cricket could be daunting and at times even intimidating. The transition is always looked at as a big challenge. On top of that, the slot he got was that of an opener, the only one available in the team. Dhull’s natural position is No 3 or 4.
High on his beautiful cricket in the Caribbean and with a temperament resembling a senior pro, Dhull, notched up his maiden hundred on debut against Tamil Nadu on Thursday. In the process, he joins an elite company of GR Viswanath, Sachin Tendulkar, Rohit Sharma, to name a few, to score a hundred on debut.
Dhull of course was elated. “Pleased with scoring a hundred for Delhi. It feels nice that it came on my debut. I am happy that it (century) helped the team,” said Dhull in an exclusive chat with TNIE.
Dhull reminisced about the time he spent in bio-bubble and talked about those invaluable practice sessions that helped him even during his game on Thursday. “The time at the U-19 World Cup, be it preparations, the games (matches), the bio-bubble was all a learning experience. The overall atmosphere was fantastic and we enjoyed our experience. Certainly it was handy while playing for Delhi. I did not have any problem adapting from white ball to the red ball.”
Dhull believed keeping things simple helped him maintain his focus. Dhull began attacking, scoring almost run a ball initially before slowing it down to a comfortable pace to help his team register two crucial stands that helped Delhi get near the 300-run mark. “Yes, I played what came naturally to me. I kept it simple and played on the merit of the ball. After a while, I paced my innings in order to register a couple of stands and help the team post a good total. I wanted to play as long as possible,’’ said Dhull.
Coming back to the Under-19 World Cup, the youngster said it was the most memorable moment of his life and felt that team work and guidance of VVS Laxman and the support staff helped them bag the coveted trophy. “It was a wonderful moment to win the World Cup. We played as a team and won the trophy. It was absolute teamwork and guidance from all our coaches and Laxman sir that helped us win. Another thing that helped us win was we took one match at a time. According to the situation, we had plans. If plan A failed, we had plan B,” he said.
Dhull was picked by Delhi Capitals in the IPL auction for `50 lakh. He will play under Rishabh Pant. Dhull acknowledged that expectations would be high after his World Cup performances. “We are aware of the expectations after the successful campaign. But I will play my natural game and not put unnecessary pressure. We are also aware of the quality in the IPL and we know that we have to give 100 %,’’ he said. Talking about India coach Rahul Dravid, who was in charge of National Cricket Academy, Dhull said, “Dravid sir has been a big influence on us. He told us ‘Believe in yourself, trust your game and follow the process’, which I always do”.
At the end of the day Dhull’s 113 helped Delhi reach 291 for seven. Delhi were precariously placed at 7 for 2 at one stage.