“I got the benefit of being an all-rounder” - Ayush Badoni opens up on his maiden call-up

Indian all-rounder Ayush Badoni, who earned his maiden call-up to the Indian ODI squad for the ongoing three-match series against New Zealand, replacing Washington Sundar, has opened up on his selection.

Speaking in an exclusive interaction with the bcci.tv, the Delhi all-rounder has revealed that being an all-rounder has benefited him to get his maiden call-up to the Indian ODI squad, adding that he has got a lot of wickets with the ball in hand for his state team.

"I was with the Delhi team, I was captain there and we had a match the next day, quarter finals against Vidarbha, it was then that I got to know (about the call-up). Priyansh (Arya) was my roommate, and I told him that it could happen, and he may have to lead the side because I might have to go," Badoni said in an interaction released by bcci.tv.

"Earlier I used to do batting, but since the last two years, I have been focusing a lot on my bowling. I always feel like I can take wickets, and contribute to the team with my bowling, so I got the benefit of being an all-rounder. I have bowled a lot for Delhi and got wickets, so I have benefitted from it," he added.

He also revealed that he couldn’t inform his parents about his selection, as he got to know about his selection late at night. However, his parents got to know about his inclusion after the BCCI made the news official. 

"I actually got the call late at night, so I could not tell them. It was then announced in the morning, and that is when they got to know. They were also very happy and proud," Badoni said.

"A lot of the senior players in the team are legends, so I try to learn from them when they bat or bowl, I think that enhances my game. I just try to learn as much as I can. There are a lot of players with whom I have fun with, I have known Harshit Rana for a while because he also plays for Delhi, then there is Arshdeep and Shreyas also, I have a lot of fun with them," he concluded.

India’s updated for the third ODI against New Zealand: Shubman Gill (C), Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, KL Rahul (WK), Shreyas Iyer (VC), Ravindra Jadeja, Mohd Siraj, Harshit Rana, Prasidh Krishna, Kuldeep Yadav, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Arshdeep Singh, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Dhruv Jurel (WK), Ayush Badoni.

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