JOIN USAfter a successful season, K Gowtham is braced up for tougher tasks ahead. The talented Karnataka player was picked in the India 'A' squad for the tour of England last month after a promising show in the IPL. The off-spinning all-rounder called the experience of playing in the Old Blighty humbling.
"Most people talk and ask me about what I learnt about the game," Gowtham began about his English sojourn. "... But for me, more than cricket, the England tour had an impact on my personality. I learnt to be more humble. The biggest takeaway was that I helped my team-mates and I enjoyed being a team man," Gowtham told reporters here on Saturday ahead of his Karnataka Premier League preparations. Gowtham, who played for champions Belagavi Panthers last season, will turn out for Mysore Warriors this year.
It wasn't an easy tour for Gowtham, who played the 50-over tri-series involving England Lions and West Indies 'A'. From three outings, the 29-year-old bagged just two wickets. In the first two games, Gowtham was on the expensive side. He went wicketless for 51 runs in seven overs in the first game against Lions and conceded 45 of six overs for a wicket in the next match against the same opponents. His best figures of 10-1-28-1 came against West Indies 'A'.
"Bowling in England summer is something completely different from what we see here. The wickets were slightly slow. They weren't conducive for seam bowling as I had heard about. The wickets weren't bowler friendly and that was a challenge for me. The surface assisted the batsmen. The outfields were really fast. So I had to work on my pace and length to keep the run flow down. It was all about adapting to the conditions," he explained.
With impressive performances in all three formats, Gowtham has been on the fringes of the senior national team from past two years. Gowtham feels he is close to achieving his dream of playing for the country.
"I am feeling confident and things are working out for me. I am just trying to do my best so that I can play for my country. You never know what will happen and when you will receive your chance. I want to give my 100 per cent in the Quadrangular series and the KPL. Whatever I have achieved today, it is because of the hard work that went into my game when I wasn't part of the Karnataka side. The hard work has paid off," he offered.