MUMBAI: Sachin Tendulkar, Shaun Pollock and Zaheer Khan were on a conference call with Team Mumbai owner Nita Ambani when they mutually decided to bid for South African Jean-Paul Duminy. "Get him at any cost" was the message.
Back in South Africa, JP had no clue about this. Ahead of this year's auction, he was trying to figure out a price for himself when his agent asked him to settle for a 'modest' sum of $300,000. "$950,000! It took me a moment to digest that," he said, giggling, once the hammer came down and the big day had passed. "I'm looking forward to being in Mumbai," he emphatically announced.
JP, Jean-Paul, Duminy - he's okay with whatever name they've been using to praise his recent performances. The 24-year-old is fine as long as accolades are flowing in. In fact, given a full stint in IPL this year, the batsman is quite sure that his fame will reach newer heights.
"Patience is my virtue, my strength. I wait for the right opportunity," he told TOI, pointing out how the 166 against Australia at Melbourne came just at a time when the IPL beckoned.
"Any player would be lying if he says he wasn't looking forward to the auction. Money is a huge incentive," the attractive batsman says.
"It is the thrill of playing alongside Tendulkar and Jayasuriya, against the likes of Chris Gayle, Yuvraj Singh, Virender Sehwag, Albie Morkel, that Duminy's waiting for. "It's dream cricket and that's the biggest thrill of the IPL," he says.
Duminy wasn't always like this, so confident of his approach, mentally battle-hardened and wanting to rub shoulders with the best in business.
Until a couple of years ago, in fact, he had been so low on confidence that he consulted Jeremy Snape, former cricketer-turned-sports psychologist to help him clear his mind.
"Snape took on the mental aspect of my game and changed it for the better. That stint with him allowed me to mature, soothe my trigger points. I wasn't able to grab a regular place in the team, specifically in Tests. Things gradually improved," says Duminy.
Finding those trigger points, enabling yourself to understand where your strengths and weaknesses lie is, in Duminy's opinion, the sole important factor of any sportsman's career.
"Today, I'd say my greatest strength is that I can identify the right situation, tell myself what I need to do and when that can benefit the team," he says.
It's not like Duminy comes across as an individual who thinks he's already figured out everything. "I can't think something like 'I've already arrived'. At the end of it all, contemporary cricket means daily struggle and it gets tougher as you go ahead.
"When I come to Mumbai for the IPL, I'll have to do enough to be accepted by my team, prove myself first," he says. Duminy only wants to get it across that he's got an eye for variety.
"And I'm grateful that the IPL saw that in me," he says. Batting aside, Duminy can also roll his arm over and is touted as a fielder in the class of Jonty Rhodes, which speaks a lot about this talented South African.
http://ipl.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/I-cant-think-like-Ive-already-arrived/articleshow/4133480.cms
Back in South Africa, JP had no clue about this. Ahead of this year's auction, he was trying to figure out a price for himself when his agent asked him to settle for a 'modest' sum of $300,000. "$950,000! It took me a moment to digest that," he said, giggling, once the hammer came down and the big day had passed. "I'm looking forward to being in Mumbai," he emphatically announced.
JP, Jean-Paul, Duminy - he's okay with whatever name they've been using to praise his recent performances. The 24-year-old is fine as long as accolades are flowing in. In fact, given a full stint in IPL this year, the batsman is quite sure that his fame will reach newer heights.
"Patience is my virtue, my strength. I wait for the right opportunity," he told TOI, pointing out how the 166 against Australia at Melbourne came just at a time when the IPL beckoned.
"Any player would be lying if he says he wasn't looking forward to the auction. Money is a huge incentive," the attractive batsman says.
"It is the thrill of playing alongside Tendulkar and Jayasuriya, against the likes of Chris Gayle, Yuvraj Singh, Virender Sehwag, Albie Morkel, that Duminy's waiting for. "It's dream cricket and that's the biggest thrill of the IPL," he says.
Duminy wasn't always like this, so confident of his approach, mentally battle-hardened and wanting to rub shoulders with the best in business.
Until a couple of years ago, in fact, he had been so low on confidence that he consulted Jeremy Snape, former cricketer-turned-sports psychologist to help him clear his mind.
"Snape took on the mental aspect of my game and changed it for the better. That stint with him allowed me to mature, soothe my trigger points. I wasn't able to grab a regular place in the team, specifically in Tests. Things gradually improved," says Duminy.
Finding those trigger points, enabling yourself to understand where your strengths and weaknesses lie is, in Duminy's opinion, the sole important factor of any sportsman's career.
"Today, I'd say my greatest strength is that I can identify the right situation, tell myself what I need to do and when that can benefit the team," he says.
It's not like Duminy comes across as an individual who thinks he's already figured out everything. "I can't think something like 'I've already arrived'. At the end of it all, contemporary cricket means daily struggle and it gets tougher as you go ahead.
"When I come to Mumbai for the IPL, I'll have to do enough to be accepted by my team, prove myself first," he says. Duminy only wants to get it across that he's got an eye for variety.
"And I'm grateful that the IPL saw that in me," he says. Batting aside, Duminy can also roll his arm over and is touted as a fielder in the class of Jonty Rhodes, which speaks a lot about this talented South African.
http://ipl.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/I-cant-think-like-Ive-already-arrived/articleshow/4133480.cms
1 comment:
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