There's great unity in the side, says Pandey

It's been only one season since Manish Pandey took the Karnataka captaincy baton from R Vinay Kumar. The stylish batsman appears to have eased into the new role. After a semifinal exit in Ranji Trophy, Karnataka clinched their maiden Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy under Pandey. The skipper said youngsters' grabbing their chances and playing as a team has helped him.

"We have a fabulous side. It's obviously challenging to lead a team with new guys but the way guys like (Devdutt) Padikkal and KV (Siddharth) have taken their opportunities, my job has become easier," Pandey told reporters here on the eve of Karnataka's opening Vijay Hazare Trophy game against Hyderabad.

The 30-year-old stressed on the importance of playing as a team. "We had a good run in the Mushtaq Ali purely because we were united. Everybody played for each other and there was great unity in the side," he offered.

It's been a busy last three months for Pandey. After the A tour and the limited-overs series in the West Indies, Pandey led India 'A' in three one-dayers against South Africa 'A' in Thiruvananthapuram. He was then part of the three-match home T20I series against South Africa that concluded here on Sunday. The right-hand batsman said the constant travelling hasn't affected him.

"Honestly, I always look forward to playing for Karnataka. Even if I had checked out from the hotel today, I would have come and joined the group. It's always lovely to have this Karnataka badge on my shirt. It's great to spend time with this bunch of players that I have played a lot with. For example, I have played a lot of years with (Abhimanyu) Mithun...we have been playing together for Karnataka for almost 10 years now. It's great to come back and play with your friends," he said.

As Vinay's deputy, Pandey worked well with the old warhorse in the last couple of seasons. "Definitely we have learnt a lot from Vinay. He is someone who did a lot for Karnataka and for all of us when we were playing under him. His work ethics and the way he used to lead were something we admired," Pandey observed.