You always have butterflies in your stomach: Arshdeep Singh on Indian call-up

Arshdeep Singh had a massive IPL campaign this season as the left-arm fast bowler from Punjab picked ten wickets at a surreal economy of 7.70. But, more importantly, his heroics in the death overs became the talk of the town during the tournament, which also played a pivotal role in the bowler's maiden India call-up. 

Ahead of India's home T20I series against South Africa, Arshdeep has expressed his gratitude towards the selectors for giving him the opportunity to don the India jersey. 

Addressing NDTV, Arshdeep said that he is grateful after being picked in the squad and stressed that a player always remains in an excited state before playing every match, irrespective of his longevity as a cricketer. He also said that if a player is given enough clarity of his role in the side, it becomes significantly more accessible for him to execute the plans on the field. 

"I am grateful after being picked in the squad. You always have butterflies in your stomach, no matter how much cricket you play. The excitement to play cricket is always there in a cricketer. But when you get the role clarity from your team, it makes things easier in terms of execution," Arshdeep said. 

Arshdeep was able to nail accurate yorkers at will, which established him as a fine death-bowling prospect in IPL 2022. When enquired about the secret of his success as a yorker specialist, Arshdeep revealed that he mastered this art by practising it rigorously in the nets. 

He also thanked the PBKS bowling coach Damien Wright, who advised him to practice bowling yorkers with a wet ball to execute the delivery properly, even in the presence of dew. 

"I guess it is all about repetition (how he has managed to deliver yorkers consistently). Yorker is a delivery that you learn to perfect after bowling it ball after ball," the Punjab kings spearhead said. 

"The credit goes to my bowling coach Jaswant Rai and also the bowling (coach) of PBKS Damien Wright. They have worked a lot with me. Before the match, Wright used to tell me that I should practice bowling yorkers with the wet ball as well because if dew comes in, then there are chances of missing the yorkers," the 23-year-old concluded.