Bist upbeat despite injury

Patience however is something that Bist is losing with each passing day. Had there been no additions to the calendar following the West Indies tour,Bist would have still sat happily at home and tended to his thumb. But having been informed that the India A tour to New Zealand tour is scheduled to take place in the next one and half months,he is praying that the tough times come to an end. “I need at least 20 days of practice before the New Zealand tour. But if my injury consumes another 15-20 days,I’ll be left with very less time for preparation. I am hoping that the selectors believe in me and give me a chance to tour NZ. Even if I get five days,I’ll leave no stone unturned to come back to batting rhythm,” Bist added.

Bist might be down with injury but he is certainly not out. Bist says he knows what all he needs to get back into the groove and prepare for the New Zealand tour. Before heading to the Caribbean,Bist included different pitches in his batting routine but,in New Zealand where the ball packs a lot of movement and bounce,Bist plans to play with taped tennis balls to face extra swing. “Obviously,the practice has to be perfect. West Indies is a place which has both bounce and spin,so I made sure that I got to bat against spin and pace. New Zealand conditions are conducive for movement. I am planning to play a lot of fast bowling on turf wickets with tennis balls that are taped on one side to get an enhanced swing in air,” Bist explains.

When asked about what went wrong for the India A during the West Indies tour,Bist quickly admitted to the lack of practice during his time in the Caribbean . “During that tour,we hardly got to practice. Rains followed us everywhere. Before the first and second matches we were not able to practice a day before the match. Next day we were playing a match and you can’t go and play well without getting to know or adjust to Caribbean wickets. But despite that,we managed to win the first match,which I feel was a huge achievement,” he said.