The young Indian cricketer Riyan Parag had a disappointing run in the IPL 2023 and his performance was so poor that his franchise Rajasthan Royals had to drop him in some matches but the cricketer seemed to have a complete turnaround in the recently concluded Deodhar Trophy.
Though Riyan’s team East Zone lost the final to Mayank Agarwal-led South Zone, Riyan Parag ended the tournament as the Player of the Tournament who was the highest run-getter, third highest wicket-taker and the player with the most sixes.
After the tournament, in an interview, Riyan Parag talked about the chat that he had with his idol Virat Kohli. He said, “Mai puri baat nahi bata paunga (I won’t be able to tell the complete conversation). He told me ‘something that has worked for half a year cannot be wrong after a few failures. What happens in the IPL is that the tournament goes on so fast that after failing in two games, you start to question yourself. Everyone makes mistakes and I have made tons of them. Two-three games don’t go your way and you feel (the need) to change your process and work ethic.”
Riyan further added, “It was him telling me that ‘take the reality check and accept that this is a bad phase but it doesn’t mean that you need to change the process that has been working for you’.”
He also talked about the heavy trolling that he faces on social media platforms and also said that he has an idea why people don’t like him. He said, “People have a problem with me chewing gum. If my collar is up that’s a problem. I celebrate after taking a catch that’s a problem. They have a problem with me gaming and playing golf in my off time. I have an idea why people hate me. There is a rulebook about how you should play cricket. The T-shirt should be tucked in, the collar should be down, give respect to everyone, don’t sledge anyone, and I am completely the opposite.”
Well played, Riyan Parag.
