"I've already seen a lot in life, so these things are not problems" - Sanjay Yadav puts IPL 2023 auction disappointment behind him
The Indian Premier League (IPL) auction is a fickle event, and cricketers like Sanjay Yadav can easily attest to that.
Just months after a record-breaking Tamil Nadu Premier League campaign in which he finished as the leading run-getter by a landslide margin and took up challenging roles with the ball, the 27-year-old didn't see any paddles raised for him when his name came up. Ahead of the event, he was even released by five-time champions Mumbai Indians.
In an exclusive interview with Sportskeeda, Sanjay Yadav opened up about a variety of topics, including his reaction to being released by MI, his domestic white-ball season with Tamil Nadu and his personal growth as a cricketer.
Also Read: "I got a call from them just before I was being released" - Sanjay Yadav reveals what MI told him ahead of IPL 2023 auction
Excerpts from Sportskeeda's exclusive interview with Sanjay Yadav
Q: Despite being one of the favorites, Tamil Nadu didn't go all the way in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy and the Vijay Hazare Trophy. How would you rate the team's performance as well as your individual performance?
Sanjay Yadav: Everyone in the team did well. When it comes to my individual performance, there was a lot I could've done better. As a player, you can never say that you did well because there's always room for improvement every day. Only when you do that, it'll be easier at the higher levels you play. It was a learning experience and I've paid attention to the mistakes I've made. I'll do better next time, but everyone in the team performed well.
Q: What specifically do you think you need to work on?
Sanjay Yadav: From a technical aspect, there are a few things I need to work on. Mentally, it comes down to how we handle certain situations. Maybe we read the situation wrong, or maybe we couldn't execute what we wanted to do. So we need to see whether it's a technical issue or a mental issue. When a match ends, you'll always know what you should've done better.
There'll always be situations like this, and handling them should be better each time you're in them. Presence of mind and presence of situation need to be better; only then it'll get easier. Once the quarterfinals come, they're all pressure games since they're knockouts. From a personal perspective, I should've done better.
Q: One of the highlights of the white-ball season was Tamil Nadu's opening partnerships, especially in the Vijay Hazare Trophy. Were batters even padded up in the dugout or did they just assume wickets wouldn't fall? They can't be blamed if they did think that!
Sanjay Yadav: Nothing like that [laughs]. Sai [Sudharsan] and Jaggi [N Jagadeesan] were in such good form and they took it match by match. It was so entertaining to watch. And when wickets don't fall early, big scores are inevitable since you'll have wickets in hand. They played well according to the situation and things became easier. The bowlers also performed well.
Q: Both the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy and the Vijay Hazare Trophy saw you have a reduced role with the ball when compared to the Tamil Nadu Premier League, for instance. Did that affect you in any way? How did you respond to not completing your quota of overs in almost all matches?
Sanjay Yadav: There were so many bowlers - Varun [Chakaravarthy], Ash [Murugan Ashwin], Washi [Washington Sundar], Apar [Baba Aparajith], Sai [Kishore], Nattu [T Natarajan], Sandy [Sandeep Warrier], Simbu [R Silambarasan]. At that time, I was in the mindset to perform whenever called upon. There is the desire to bowl the full quota in each game, of course, but when there are so many bowlers, it's tough to predict when the captain will want your services.
Q: We saw a drop in your batting returns as well. Some of it was down to a change in role, but what would you attribute it to on the whole? And what do you think you could have done better, in hindsight?
Sanjay Yadav: The wickets were a little slow when compared to other venues. All the matches in our zone were low-scoring, only 130-140 in most matches. Next time, we need to see how to plan better for these wickets and how to play. When you get good wickets, you have the belief you'll do well and past performances back that up as well.
But on the slower wickets, T20 cricket gets a little more challenging. Shot selection becomes very important on these kinds of wickets. Had we qualified, we'd have gone to Kolkata and got superb wickets where we could've posted 200-plus scores. So maybe that was a disadvantage. But more than a disadvantage, we should've planned accordingly, as I said earlier. Presence of mind becomes paramount.
Q: The Ranji Trophy is currently going on, and you're unfortunately not part of the squad. We all know what you're capable of in red-ball cricket after your terrific season with Meghalaya. Is it tough to watch from the sidelines in a format you have excelled at?
Sanjay Yadav: Of course, I definitely feel sad to miss out. I did well in the league matches as well. As an all-rounder, you have a lot of chances to do well in the longer formats. I have the belief that I'll do well for Tamil Nadu; we'll see when the chances come my way.
Q: Domestic cricketers in India have often complained about the off-season, which they say is too long without any cricket to be played. Players have often found it tough to stay motivated during this period. What are your plans for the upcoming months, both on the field and off it? How will you keep yourself physically and mentally fit?
Sanjay Yadav: The next edition of the Chennai league will come soon. After that, there'll be the next TNPL and then as usual, the Syed Mushtaq Ali and the Vijay Hazare. Only in times like this, we'll get time to think about ourselves and plan what we need to do better.
Fitness-wise also, we'll get 3-4 months. We need to push ourselves physically while staying injury-free. Growth will always be good in the off-season. Everyone, including me, has a plan. When the season starts again, we won't need to spend time to improve certain things. So from all aspects, there's room for growth.
Q: We're seeing more and more players appoint mental conditioning coaches to work on that aspect of their game. During tough times, do you ever turn to anyone for mental support and conditioning?
Sanjay Yadav: Nothing like that, I've never needed anything like that. I'm not that depressed [laughs]! Of course, I'm a little sad, but that's how life is. There are ups and there are downs. I've already seen a lot in life, so these things are not problems. Maybe next year will be better.