Brilliant to see the fearlessness of young Indian players: Marcus Stoinis
New Delhi, Mar 26 (PT) Australian all-rounder Marcus Stoinis has been left supremely impressed by the quality of youngsters in the Punjab Kings squad as well as the Indian T20 set up on the sidlelines of the IPL.
After the retirement of stalwarts Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and Ravindra Jadeja, the depth of Indian cricket has ensured that T20 team has built on the success of the 2024 T20 World Cup courtesy the likes of Tilak Varma and Abhishek Sharma.
At Punjab Kings camp, rookies like opener Priyansh Arya have already made a mark even though it is early days in the IPL.
“There’s great depth here (in Indian cricket)_. There always has been. And I think they’re getting the chance to show their skills on a world stage,” Stoinis told PTI.
“They are super confident. They’ve had almost the advantage of growing up with IPL, being under pressure from early stages in their career. It’s brilliant to see how fearless they are with their cricket and especially (while playing for) Indian cricket (team).
“Some of the youngsters in the Punjab Kings camp who have never really played the IPL are very impressive,” said the 35-year-old.
Stoinis returns to the franchise after almost a decade and is excited to work compatriot and head coach Ricky Ponting.
“A lot of Aussie boys here, which is nice for me. So it does feel at home,” he said referring to the likes of Glenn Maxwell, Aaron Hardie and Josh Inglis.
“It was my second year in the IPL that I moved to here. So yeah, it’s all familiar. I love the IPL.
“It’s a mainstay in the calendar. It’s something we all look forward to and personally I look forward to. I’s exciting to have the opportunity to bring some success to this franchise,” said the Perth based cricketer.
All phases of Kohli’s career has served a purpose
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Stoinis’ connection with Virat Kohli goes back to their U-19 days when the Indian led his team to the World Cup title in 2008.
Stoinis said he remains in touch with the Indian superstar and has enjoyed tracking his remarkable career.
“We’ve known each other for a long time. We’ve got a mutual friend in Perth that has known him for a long time as well. So that’s sort of how that relationship started.
“But yeah, what a great career it’s been so far. It’s definitely not finished. It seems like he’s worn a few caps throughout his career in terms of being the young guy coming into an Indian team that forced his way in there at such a young age and showed such confidence in himself to crack into such a good team to then leading the team and almost changing the whole culture of Indian cricket and inspiring a lot of the young cricketers around India and around the world.
“And then a whole new phase of the fitness side of things as well that he inspired in the Indian set-up to now mentoring the new kids on the block. And he’s got his family now as well.
“I think all of those phases have served a purpose, not only for himself, but as a mentor for the wider public and the cricket community. So always hats off to him, to be honest,” added Stoinis.
