“I’m Somebody Who Isn’t Going To Give Up”: Mayank Agarwal On India Future

Mayank Agarwal’s international career got off to a flyer as he played a big role in India winning their first ever Test series in Australia in 2018-19. However, three years on, he has been pushed down the pecking order in Tests as well as ODIs, and he is yet to get a T20I cap. A dismal IPL 2022 campaign did not help his cause either. But the 31-year-old is determined to keep pushing and make a comeback for the national team.

“I am somebody who isn’t going to give up,” Mayank Agarwal told ESPNcricinfo while talking about his future in international cricket.

“I am going to keep chasing it and improve my game with each passing day. I will be very happy with whatever comes my way, but the aspirations and dreams never die,” the opening batter added. “It’s about going out there, improving and ticking all those boxes.”

Having finished IPL 2022 with just 196 runs from 12 innings, Mayank has worked on his white-ball game and the results are there to be seen in the Maharaja Trophy – Karnataka’s local T20 tournament.

In 11 outings, the right-hander has scored 480 runs at a strike rate of 167.24 while leading Bengaluru Blasters. He has averaged an impressive 53.33, having hit two centuries.

“In the last four months, I’ve really worked hard on my batting. As you can see, I’ve started sweeping and reverse-sweeping the ball, that too against the fast bowlers,” Agarwal said about the work he has put in to improve his limited-overs batting.

“I’ve opened up four-five areas in my game which are paying rich dividends. I am very happy that the hard work I put in is paying off now,” he added.

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“Getting two hundreds in a T20 tournament like the Maharaja Trophy feels amazing. It feels really nice when the players respond to you the way you want. Obviously runs behind my back really makes me feel good and then I can lead from the front,” he said.

Mayank’s heroics have helped Bengaluru Blasters reach the final of the Maharaja Trophy, where they will face either Gulbarga Mystics or Mysuru Warriors on Friday.