Dubai: Star all-rounder Marcus Stoinis says carrying the confidence of good BBL performance into the 13th IPL and not putting too much pressure on himself should help him deliver for his new team Delhi Capitals. The 31-year-old made a quick-fire 53 off 21 balls to help his side score 157 for 8 and then snapped two wickets to drag their IPL opener against Kings XI Punjab into a Super Over, where they emerged victories.
“I’ve come in with some confidence through good performances this year, but also maybe putting less responsibility on myself than some other years,” said Stoinis, who scored 705 runs for Melbourne Stars to top the Big Bash League runs chart, early this year. “Sometimes when you’re young and you’re in a rush, you want to do well and you’re trying so hard. This year I sort of just wanted to express myself and its only one game, so we’ll see, you can turn from a hero to a villain quickly, but yes, my focus is on just having a lot of fun and trust that I’ll be good.” The 31-year-old said “going back to basics has helped” him.
“Everyone who plays cricket at this level, the main reason you play it, is because you love it. That’s the main ingredient,” he said. Stoinis had signed up with Delhi Daredevils in 2015, before being picked by Kings XI Punjab next year. He then played for Royal Challengers Bangalore before Delhi Capitals bought him in the 2020 IPL auction.
“There are a lot of games, as a professional sportsman, that you go out and you don’t perform as well as you want to,” said Stoinis, who has taken 17 wickets and scored 526 runs in 30 IPL matches so far. “Cricket is that type of game you sort of get used to under-performing a lot of the time. So when you do perform and you do well for the team, it’s a very rewarding feeling.” Stoinis, a limited-overs specialist, said that Delhi Capitals has a right balance.
“With Ricky as a coach and as a leader, he sets that standard. We have a good core of young players, with lots of energy and some good experience. We’ve got some good overseas players too,” Stoinis said. “So I think our balance on the whole, makes it an exciting group and we’ve got a good energy around the team.” Delhi Capitals will take on three-time winners Chennai Super Kings on Friday in Dubai in their next match.
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