New Zealand all-rounder James Nesham, who will play the IPL after six years says “steadier head” and international success will help him in his stint with Kings Xi Punjab. He admits that he did not know much of the game when he made his IPL debut is years ago with Delhi franchise. He earned his national cap in December 2012.
He has had a journey since then, did not get picked for the 2015 World Cup and almost retired after the 2017 champions Trophy. He later became an important part of the New Zealand campaign the 2019 World Cup where his side missed the trophy by a whisker.
Neesham is not sure how many games will he be able to get as Kings XI Punjab is already spoilt for chances hen it comes to international players.
“It is my first time getting involved in a long time. It is exciting to come as an older player and as an experienced player. Last time I played for Delhi, I was young and talented but didn’t really know much about my game,” he said. He has arrived in Dubai and is under the mandatory quarantine period before he can join the squad for training. “I did not know what I needed to do to succeed. It was a challenge back then,” he added.
Even though Neesham got picked by KKR during the 2015 IPL, he could not join due to sustaining an injury.
“This time I have come with a steadier head and knowledge under the belt and hopefully I can pass that knowledge to some of the younger guys in the squad. Really excited about our team, we got some of the biggest names in the world in Chris Gayle and Glen Maxwell and it is a team that can certainly win a lot of games and the tournament.”
James Neesham flew from New Zealand along with the national skipper Kane Williamson who will be playing for the Sunrisers Hyderabad. He also admitted that quarantine can be boring and that he is lucky that things aren’t as bad in his country. “There is plenty of people around the world who are doing a lot tougher than staying in the hotel room and ordering room service for six days. So yeah, take it on the chin and get it done basically.”
“The focus was to get as fit as I have ever been. Unfortunately, with the restrictions, there has not been enough opportunities to hit and bowl a lot of balls, so looking forward to that after quarantine.” The IPL is all set to begin on 19th September in UAE with the first match between Mumbai Indians and Chennai Super Kings.
