Riyan Parag scored 552 runs, including three hundreds, in the recently concluded Vijay Hazare Trophy and helped his side Assam reach the semi-final stage of the tournament. It has been a stellar season with the bat for the 21-year-old who has faced a lot of flak on social media in the past for his outings with Rajasthan Royals in the Indian Premier League. From cutting the outside noise to making minor batting tweaks, Riyan has certainly turned a corner in what turned out to be a dream tournament for both him and Assam.
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In an exclusive interaction with cricketnext.com, the youngster throws light on what he did to bat long and big this season, how he managed to cut the outside noise, the role of R Ashwin and Yuzvendra Chahal in his growth as a bowler, and more. Excerpts:
Runs, tons and Assam reaching Vijay Hazare Trophy semi-final. It has been a great season for both the team and you. How has it been on the personal front?
To be honest I have been putting in the work for the last few years and haven’t been achieving the results I wanted to but this year I guess I was more focused, I blocked out the outside noise, I was not talking to many people and was focussing on what I had and the task which was at hand. Season’s not over yet but it has been very decent so far.
You were always known to hit long and big and it was on display during the VHT too. But the hundreds and the big knocks finally came from your bat. What changes did you make to your game to kind of bat long and deep into the innings?
I just figured out that I need to score big runs and in order to score big runs the only way was to work around my big shots. The big shots were going to come regardless of the situation so I just had to play around that. I just figured how I could rotate the strike after a big shot, how I could plan a big shot, how I could set up a particular bowler for a big shot. So I just revolved my game around it instead of curtailing my natural instinct and forte. So, I just based my game around the boundary shots. Even though the tournament went well I missed out on at least another 150-200 runs easily. Out of the eight (nine) matches, I got four big scores, one golden duck, there was thirty… It has gone well, I did make the big scores count but It could have been better and I should have been sitting on 700+ runs this season of Vijay Hazare Trophy.
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On the team front, Assam bossed a group featuring domestic giants like Delhi and Karnataka. What changed within the team to take the big teams on?
I think the self-belief changed. Personally, I have always loved playing good teams and I think that’s what brings the best out of me as a cricketer. But the challenge was to pass the mindset and have the same mindset through the unit. It was important to have all players aligned towards mindset of say qualifying for knockouts and even winning the trophy. The boys should the composure and Assam’s not the weak link in a group anymore.
You have been part of the IPL since 2019 now, with the Rajasthan Royals. You feel the IPL experience hardened you, mentally, for the battles ahead?
Playing in such a big league with such big stars it definitely evolves you as a cricketer and that has helped me to play a certain brand of cricket that I am playing in domestic circuit. And I want to continue doing that in the IPL and international stage for sure. I have always been like that (mentally strong). I have always had that killer-instinct or had the strongest mindset wherever I was playing and a tournament like IPL certainly helps.
Even when the world had saw little of you, RR picked you and have backed you since then. How crucial was it to get that kind of support early on in your career?
A lot. Sanga (Kumar Sangakkara) and the whole crew including Sanju Samson they have shown a lot of belief in me. In the last four years, the first year was good for me then next three years playing down the order… I have always said it’s the toughest job in T20 cricket. It’s a challenge which I want to master and I am on my way learning a lot of new things and you only get better playing that role. Playing No.6/7 in a high pressure T20 game is a tough job but will only build your character. The external noise is always there. Everyone talked about how the management backed me but no one really threw light on why they are backing me. That only the team and management know. No one is there at the practice sessions or the matches we play or even the domestic. People only follow scores. That’s not how an IPL team works or in fact any team works. Only we know what goes on behind the scenes or what’s the reason for the belief they have shown in me. I am in a very good mental space, and how to take the next step or reach the next level. People will have opinions – good or bad. That doesn’t really matter.
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Still I think it’s hard to ignore the external noise for a youngster when the notifications keep popping on Twitter, Instagram…
2020 was a really low point in my career. 2019 was banger of a season and then coming into 2020 and doing literally nothing… apart from one game I think. There was lot of outside noise then and I am really glad and grateful that happened. I needed something to learn from. I needed my backs against the wall so that I can come back and prove myself to myself. Not anybody else. Even if Sanga or Sanju back me or believe in me and I don’t really believe in what they are saying about me or game, then there’s no point. I have been prioritising myself and my opinions about myself. I can surely play for India in the next years so I am just sticking to that and working, working and only working towards that.
Not getting into specifics or deep diving into the games last season but did you ever get a feeling that a youngster taking the big boys/established players on, on the big stage didn’t quite sit well with them?
There is this thing in India where cricket is supposed to be played in a certain way. There’s a rule book for cricket I feel that only successful players can celebrate and you can do this you can do that. I started the game because I loved it and enjoyed playing the game. And that’s how I play my cricket… even if it’s the IPL or school game back home. I am not going to change my way of playing cricket or the way I celebrate. It’s just that I have fun. People nowadays have taken out fun from the game, it’s a very serious game (laughs). I like to play my cricket in a very fun way. That’s not going to change. If people want to change their opinion, they can. Even if they don’t, it doesn’t really matter because I am very content with myself.
Coming back to the domestic season, you have bowled a lot this year. Has it been a cautious effort to work on that area of your game and continue doing it on a regular basis?
100%. First it helps my domestic team, second It helps my IPL team too and third it’s my goal to play as an all-rounder for India. I don’t want to play as a pure batter. I have been putting in a lot of work in the off season and last year with Ash bhai (R Ashwin) and Yuzi bhai (Yuzvendra Chahal) being in the team helped a lot. You know learning new things from them and keeping my composure while bowling.
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In very little time, Ranji Trophy begins. Change in plan for red ball competition or the same drill over and over again?
I mean if you look at England, they don’t really change the way they play (laughs). Different conditions, different pitches so approach could vary. But I think the positive intent has to be there because at the end of the day the main goal is to score runs right. As long as I am scoring runs, doesn’t really matter which way.
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