Kolkata, April 5 Vijaykumar Vyshak is gaining recognition in the Indian Premier League, and to remain relevant in this highly scrutinised environment, the Punjab Kings pacer wants to consistently hit the 150 kmph mark, in addition to adding to his variations.
With five wickets in two games, Vyshak has already been more productive than the four wickets he managed in five games last season. He began his IPL journey with RCB in 2023 before moving to Punjab Kings.
The 29-year-old from Karnataka has impressed with his wide yorkers and slow bouncers this season. In the previous game against CSK in Chennai, he dismissed the in-form Ayush Mhatre and Sarfaraz Khan, limiting the opposition to 209 for five, a total his team comfortably chased down.
Punjab Kings have been using Vyshak in all three phases of the game, and the pacer is enjoying the challenge.
With so much video analysis available, he feels that the only way to succeed is to constantly improve his skills.
"I'm not as fast as some of the other bowlers. People are bowling at 154, 155 kmph. I can bowl at 140, 143, 144 kmph. But yeah, for me, I think I enjoy challenges. So it doesn't matter where I bowl."
"It doesn't matter if I have to bowl three overs in the powerplay or four overs in the death overs. As long as I'm contributing to the team," said Vyshak in a select media interaction ahead of the away game against KKR here on Monday.
As someone who plays all formats, Vyshak got his maiden India call-up for the T20 tour of South Africa in 2024, but did not get a game. His dream is to play Test cricket, but he would also love to play for India in the shortest format.
"When you start playing cricket, you always look to play Test matches for the Indian team. I think that's something that still gives me chills, the thought of wearing that Indian cap and playing a Test for my country. But I think now, the format that we're playing, I want to do well in that," said Vyshak, who has been greatly inspired by his Punjab Kings teammate, Arshdeep Singh.
In the off-season, Vyshak said that he worked hard with his coaches and Karnataka teammates to prepare for the IPL.
"Without hard work, you can't be playing at this big stage. I seriously think that whatever you've been practising and doing the right things, that will reflect in your games as well."
"Thankfully, I have some nice coaches back home as well. And I have a lot of inspiration from my Karnataka seniors who have been doing really well."
"And even during the domestic season, I think I was the lead bowler. So I wanted to take charge and I wanted to do well for the team. We didn't qualify, but I gained a lot of confidence there, and I did what I was supposed to do. Domestic cricket is something where you can actually gain your confidence because you know how good cricket is in India."
On adding to his armoury, he added: "Variations, yes, of course, whenever you come for a new season, you have to be prepared. Every team has a video analyst. You just have to keep getting better and better. So I always make sure that whenever I come, I have a new delivery for myself."
"So yeah, that's what I've been trying to do. Yes, of course, I've been trying to get even better, maybe a couple more slower ones or maybe a couple more variations. So hopefully, I can, maybe I can get it this season," he added.
As someone who has benefitted from the Impact Player concept in the IPL, Vyshak is glad that the rule was introduced back in 2023. Recently, the rule has been criticised by leading Indian stars like Shubman Gill, Axar Patel, Rohit Sharma, and Hardik Pandya.