“If there's something (wrong) with the flower, you just don't throw it away” - Mithun Manhas opens up on Yash Dayal’s comeback
Gujarat Titans (GT) assistant coach Mithun Manhas has opened up on how the franchise helped Yash Dayal in recovering after the pacer was smashed for 31 runs in a match against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR).
Dayal had 29 runs to defend off the last over in match 13 of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023 at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on April 9. However, Rinku Singh clobbered him for five consecutive sixes to pull off an incredible win for KKR.
Dayal was immediately dropped from the team and only made his comeback in the game against Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) on Monday, May 15. On how the GT think tank helped the left-arm pacer recover from the horror of conceding five consecutive sixes, Manhas said at a post-match press conference:
"A player is the direct product of the environment. You have to nurture him. It's like a flower. If there's something (wrong) with the flower, you just don't pluck it and throw it away. You need to nurture it, similarly, you need to take care of the boys - physically and mentally.
“You are like a family for two months. If you understand them and they trust you, there's nothing like that because then they will open up to you. Then it's easy to take care of them.”
Dayal made a decent comeback, registering figures of 1/31 in his four overs, getting the wicket of Abhishek Sharma.
Earlier, Gujarat Titans skipper Hardik Pandya revealed that Dayal lost weight after the KKR match due to illness.
“Hardik is pretty much okay” - Mithun Manhas on GT skipper not bowling
GT captain Hardik has not bowled in the last couple of matches. However, Manhas clarified that are no concerns over his fitness. Explaining the reason behind Hardik not bowling, the assistant coach said:
"Hardik is pretty much okay. We still have the liberty to give him rest and we have the options and that's why he's not bowling. Otherwise, he would have bowled. He's pretty much fine, and we just want him to be fit 100 per cent. He's just giving himself some extra time, that's all.”
Manhas also confirmed that Vijay Shankar was rested against SRH due to a niggle, but added there was nothing to worry about.