Cooper Connolly made a dream IPL debut, scoring an unbeaten 72 to guide Punjab Kings to victory over Gujarat Titans. He expressed delight at following his idol Shaun Marsh, who also had a stellar debut for the same franchise in 2008.
Cooper Connolly opened up on his dream debut in the Indian Premier League (IPL), where he guided Punjab Kings (PBKS) to a thrilling three-wicket win over Gujarat Titans in both teams' first game of the tournament on Tuesday. Connolly also expressed delight at following in the footsteps of his "idol" Shaun Marsh during his IPL debut. After PBKS restricted GT to 162/6 in 20 overs following a brilliant bowling effort from Marco Jansen, Yuzvendra Chahal and Vijaykumar Vyshak, the Punjab's batting unit survived a scare on Tuesday night as Connolly guided the team to a three-wicket win with an unbeaten 72-run knock.
Following in his idol's footsteps
Speaking on JioHotstar, Cooper Connolly said it was special to follow in the steps of Shaun Marsh, someone Connolly considers his idol. Notably, the former Australian cricketer, Marsh, also debuted in the IPL for the Punjab-based franchise back in the inaugural season in 2008. Marsh scored an unbeaten 84 to guide his team to a win against the Deccan Chargers.
Connolly, 22, praised Marsh as a mentor and shared that he enjoyed their time together in Western Australia, and expressed excitement about contributing runs and looking forward to the rest of the IPL season. "It was a nice moment when I got picked up. Shaun Marsh was the first person I spoke to about it, and he gave me some good words. Growing up, I played in Western Australia with him for a long period of time and he has always been good to me," he said.
"I looked up to him as a mentor and an idol and really enjoyed spending some time with him. It's nice to be among the runs. There are still plenty of games to go and I am really looking forward to the rest of the tournament," Connolly added.
On debut nerves and learning from the best
On his IPL debut, Cooper Connolly said he felt some nerves ahead of the game but was excited to contribute. He credited the PBKS head coach Ricky Ponting for keeping him calm and praised the team's strong bowling. Connolly also spoke about learning from captain Shreyas Iyer, calling him a world-class player and valuing the experience of batting alongside him.
"I woke up in the morning with a little bit of nerves, which I was really happy about, but yeah, I was really looking forward to getting out there and playing my part the best I can. Ricky Ponting just kept me calm and collected. He told me to play my game, go out there and dominate. It was a nice team performance. We were very strong with the ball and made things easier for ourselves. It was a really good day for us," Connolly said.
"I was looking forward to spending time out in the middle with Shreyas Iyer and just sort of picking his brains a little bit. He's a world-class player. I've played a little bit of cricket with him for Australia A and Australia. He is a great player for a reason, and hopefully, I can learn as much as I can," the Aussie further said.
PBKS will next face Chennai Super Kings on April 3 at the MA Chidambaram Stadium. (ANI)
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by Asianet Newsable English staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)