Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) wicketkeeper-batter Srikar Bharat has said that the No. 3 position is a beautiful spot to bat in the shortest format. According to him, if the one-down batsman can keep scoring well, he can set up the game brilliantly for the other batsmen as well.
Bharat has been batting at No. 3 in the second half of the 2021 Indian Premier League (IPL) in the UAE. On Wednesday, he played a crucial role in RCB’s seven-wicket win over the Rajasthan Royals (RR) in Dubai, amassing 44 off 35 balls. He added a 69-run stand with Glenn Maxwell (50 not out) as RCB chased 150 with ease as well.
At the post-match conference, Bharat said: “No. 3 is always a beautiful spot to bat. It asks a lot of questions if you are not ready for it. At RCB, we have always focused on keeping the strike going and getting busy right from ball one. The little things of calling well, running well and rotating the strike – All these pointers play a huge role in building up a partnership. At No. 3, if you can keep the scoreboard ticking at 8-9 per over, you have a good pace.”
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“You have people like Maxi (Maxwell) and AB (de Villiers) coming at the death or say after 12 overs. You have those wickets in hand and you can go all out towards the end of the innings. So the message was clear – I should get a partnership going and we are sticking to it,” Srikar Bharat further added.
Meanwhile, RCB got off to a good start in the chase of 150. However, after Devdutt Padikkal and Virat Kohli got out in quick succession, Bharat and Maxwell sealed the deal for the team. While they did well with the bat, Yuzvendra Chahal starred with the ball with figures of 2 for 18. While he was asked about the challenge he faced, Bharat admitted that he has to stay focused on every ball and cannot lose his concentration as well.
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“He is a world-class bowler as we all know. He varies his pace exceptionally well. You have to be right in the game every ball. You can’t fade off even for a single moment. I was just trying to keep myself in the game, trying to read him from his hands. We all know the lines and lengths he bowls, so the keeper is in play each and every ball. You’ve got to just enjoy it,” Srikar Bharat concluded.
