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Exclusive: Pietersen on IPL experience
CNN-IBN
Posted on Apr 24, 2009 at 02:22 | Updated Apr 24, 2009 at 14:42
Cape Town: Bangalore Royal Challengers skipper Kevin Pietersen spoke to CNN-IBN from Cape Town, where he is taking part in the second edition of the Indian Premier League.
CNN-IBN: How has it been so far playing the IPL in South Africa?
Kevin Pietersen: It's been absolutely fantastic playing in South Africa in the Indian Premier League. It's been well-organised and every single international (player) I have spoken to and also the Indians that I am playing with or the Indians I am playing against, everybody is excited about playing in South Africa.
It's the first time for a lot of them in South Africa. I love playing in the South African conditions. Unfortunately, there has been a lot of rain. But I am loving being here. It's such a great concept.
CNN-IBN: You had said earlier that you thought Indian players had benefited a lot from the first edition of the IPL. Now that you are a part of it, what's the sense you get?
Kevin Pietersen: I think this is the best academy ever thought of. There are seven Indians and there are four internationals that play a game and there are about 10 in total in the squad. It's incredible for those guys (Indians) to learn of guys like Kallis, Gayle. You have guys who have so much experience and you can just pick their brain.
For a young 20-year-old Indian to do that and impress these guys and try hard. It's the best academy. Lalit (Modi) has done a great job.
CNN-IBN: The T20 World Cup is in England right after the IPL. So this is a good time for the selectors from all countries to assess players before the tournament?
Kevin Pietersen: You have the best players from all the countries and what makes it more difficult is the Indian selection because you have so many Indians. It's harder for them.
CNN-IBN: When captaincy was offered to you by Dr Mallya, what kind of discussions did you have with him about the changes in the squad?
Kevin Pietersen: What happened between Dr. Mallya and myself is personal. So, it's not for anybody else but I know that we wanted to play very aggressive cricket, very high-committed cricket. We want to be on the field really giving our all. In the first game against the Rajasthan Royals, we were fantastic. We lost two games after that but from now on, we will be committed on every single ball.
CNN-IBN: Kevin, quite a few players have commented on your work ethic. How you are the first one to reach the nets and everybody follows , whats your interaction been like between you and your team mates?
Kevin Pietersen: I have had a fantastic interaction and was really looking forward to playing with Kumble, Dravid, Kallis, Steyn and also the young guys like Robin Uthappa and Kohli, the guys who I think are the superstars for the future. Then we have got players like Praveen and Vinay Kumar. So we have very good players in our set-up.
It's been fantastic playing with those guys and it's been fantastic because they ask so many great questions about cricket. They want to learn and get better. I love giving advice and helping people out. I love to see smiles on people's faces. I believe the only USP of success is hard work.
I have brought a hard work ethic to the team. The boys seem to be enjoying themselves, we are all laughing and having a good time. Boys are putting in a lot of effort in the training. Credit goes to Ray Jennings as well. He has done a fantastic job out here. The player management has been awesome.
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