I want to get some extra tips from Kumar Sangakkara: Shivam Dube

The 14th edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL), starting from April 9 in India, will see the pace all-rounder Shivam Dube plying his trade for the franchise Rajasthan Royals as he was picked by the team during the 2021 auction for INR 4.4 crore. Dube had a below-average season for Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) last year but the all-rounder is looking forward to improving his game and contribute positively to the team.

One of the aspects, the 27-year-old wants to work upon is his batting. Shivam believes that having Sri Lanka’s legendary cricketer Kumar Sangakkara, who was appointed as the team’s director of cricket ahead of the IPL 2021 season, will give him an opportunity to do a lot better as a left-handed batsman.

“He (Sangakkara) has played a lot of cricket and he is going to watch me and going to tell me what I need to add in my game to improve and to be a better left-handed batsman.

“Many things would be there, but from a batting perspective, it would be more from my side to get some extra tips from Sanga (Sangakkara), so I can perform well in the tournament,” Shivam Dube said as quoted by India Today.

Shivam Dube opens up on his batting position

There is also confusion regarding Shivam Dube’s role as a batsman in Rajasthan Royals as the franchise boasts of having an explosive all-rounder Ben Stokes on their side along with South Africa’s Chris Morris, who has the ability to contribute both with the bat and the ball.

However, Shivam isn’t concerned about his position as he is confident about batting at any position be it at the top or in the middle-order. The Mumba-born asserted that he has the experience of playing at many positions and scoring runs for his team.

“I think, I have played at many positions, so I don’t care much about what I can do, I care much about what teams needs from me. So if they want me to bat up the order, I can bat at any number, early in the innings, and if they want me as a finisher in any game, I can do that also. I have played the roles in many formats, like many tournaments of the IPL and domestic and Indian teams also, so I am really free about that,” Shivam Dube concluded.