Playing for Tamil Nadu is a matter of pride, says Antony Dhas

Dhas, who made his debut for Tamil Nadu in 2015, has been impressive in the ongoing Vijay Hazare Tournament. “Playing for the state team is a challenge and it is a matter of pride. The talent pool in the state is enormous and retaining a place in the side is the toughest. I am glad to have retained it for three years with good performances, as that is the only way to stake claim for a berth in the team,” Dhas told DTNext from Cuttack after a match against Maharashtra. 

Working under Hrishikesh Kanitkar (head coach), Lakshmipathy Balaji (bowling coach) and A Avinash (fielding coach) has made Dhas a better player. 

“I have been given freedom to experiment and give my best in the role that is defined. The coaches do not interfere and having played and coached at this level, they know how to extract the best from a player,” he added. 

Dhas grabbed the headlines when he excelled at the death with toe-crushing yorkers and three wickets against Delhi (3/52 in 7.4 overs) to give Tamil Nadu a winning start to their Vijay Hazare campaign and Dhas admitted that it was best phase of the tournament so far. 

“When you have the likes of (Shikhar) Dhawan, (Gautam) Gambhir and (Ashish) Nehra congratulating you at the end of the match, it is sure to be special. They gave me a good feedback on my bowling and it was thrilling to say the least,” Dhas added. 

Dhas said veteran Dinesh Karthik leads the team by an example. “He is always with the team and boosts youngsters. He is a guide to all of us and talks a lot about his experiences and helps us to handle match situations better. He is an excellent character to hang out with,” Dhas concluded.