I wouldn't be surprised if our youngsters play for India soon: Nathan Coulter-Nile

The Delhi Daredevils all-rounder, Nathan Coulter-Nile believes that they are a very strong side and they got a good leadership team and a bunch of talented youngsters.

Daredevils are currently placed third in the points table with 6 wins and have four more games remaining to confirm their spot in the playoffs, which they haven’t achieved after 2012.

However, the Zaheer Khan, Paddy Upton and Rahul Dravid have been working really for Delhi Daredevils this season. And they have got a group of talented youngsters on their side as well.

“We’ve got a fantastic leadership group now, with Zaheer (Khan), Rahul Dravid’s come on and Paddy Upton. That’s obviously going to help a little bit. We’ve actually got a good group of young core Indians who are, I think, some of the best in India. I wouldn’t be surprised if some of them play for India in the upcoming tournaments within 12 months. I think that does help. There’s just good, raw talent there now,” said Coulter-Nile after the match against Mumbai Indians on Sunday.

Coulter-Nile was no short of words when he spoke about his Delhi Daredevils skipper Zaheer Khan. He feels that Zaheer has a great cricketing mind and is really smart with the field placements, especially on sub-continent wickets.

“He’s fantastic. His cricket brain is unrivalled, I think, especially with the fields he sets and his thinking around what the batsman is thinking, and where they are going to try and hit the ball. When you’re seeing a bowlers meeting, and he’s talking about these plans and you’re not quite sure what’s going on. You really listen. He’s one of those blokes – when he talks, you really listen. I picked up a few different things, especially subcontinental fields and things like that. Hopefully, next time I come to India, hopefully, when I play for Australia or something, I can use that to my advantage,” Coulter-Nile said of Zaheer.

Speaking about the leadership combination of Zaheer Khan, Paddy Upton and Rahul Dravid, Coulter-Nile said: “They’ve obviously got great cricket brains and like to think about things differently. But nothing is really formal. When you have a chat, you sit down and you have a coffee. It’s not like (them telling us) ‘this is what we want, this is what you need to do’. It’s very organic. Things just flow. They present ideas, you can present your ideas, and more ideas come from that. It’s nothing rigid or strict like that.”

He has featured in only two matches in this season since the Delhi team has been changing their playing eleven in every match. DD is picking the combination based on the pitch, conditions, and opposition, which has been a successful strategy for them. Thus, no one is guaranteed a spot in the playing eleven and is all about adapting to the conditions.

“It’s not that difficult. We train a lot and you obviously go to every game, so you still get the vibe and the feel around the boys. Probably the hardest thing is game time. Not getting enough game time consistently, but that’s the job you’re in. You’ve got to be adaptable and flexible, and everyone’s doing that,” he concluded.

Also read – If you perform, you automatically become a crucial member of the team: Piyush Chawla