Ankit Kalsi: 'Good technique is the key'

Himachal Pradesh batsman Ankit Kalsi, who scored a hard-fought century in the ongoing Duleep Trophy representing India Red, reveals how a change in mindset brought the best out of him.

Ankit Kalsi scored 106 off 345 balls against India Blue at the Alur ground in Bengaluru on Saturday.

 

A dip in form cost Ankit Kalsi a spot in the Himachal Pradesh team, leading him to miss the 2017-18 season. The time away from the game forced Kalsi to reflect on where he had gone wrong. “I was 23 when I was dropped — an age when I should have been at my peak. I thought to myself, ‘It can’t go on like this’. So I had to make a big mental change. I realised that I wasn’t being honest to myself; I was faking myself. I had to be honest and accept my flaws and problems. Only if I accept my flaws can I correct it,” Kalsi said. The shift in mindset paid off.

Kalsi returned to first-class cricket with a bang, scoring three centuries and two fifties in five Ranji Trophy matches last season. He carried his good form into the Duleep Trophy underway here, with a stubborn 345-ball 106 for India Red against India Blue on Saturday. An elegant southpaw, Kalsi is compact and technically sound. “As long as I deliver what the team requires, strike rate does not matter. In general, good technique is key. Without technique, you will be found out very easily at this level,” Kalsi said.