"He told us to play as fearlessly as we could" - Prerak Mankad on playing under Ravindra Jadeja's captaincy

Ask a close follower of Indian domestic cricket about one of the most promising seam-bowling all-rounders in the country and he or she is bound to throw up Prerak Mankad's name.

Consistent showings over the years across departments have been the hallmark of the Saurashtra all-rounder. It was a facet that eluded Mankad during the recently concluded domestic season, but that wasn't to say that he didn't make his presence felt.

For the uninitiated, Mankad was part of a red-hot Saurashtra outfit that reclaimed the Ranji Trophy title for the second time. This was on the back of clinching the Vijay Hazare Trophy too at the start of December 2022, capping off a stupendous season for the Jaydev Unadkat-led outfit.

Mankad has often made a name for himself as someone who steps up when the chips are down for his team. It was no different this time around either, as pivotal runs in the knockouts of the Ranji Trophy saw him do his bit to steer Saurashtra into a zone of safety.

The domestic season is over and Mankad is now gearing up for his IPL stint with the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG).

In an exclusive chat with Sportskeeda a few days ago, Mankad dived into the season gone by, what makes this Saurashtra team so special, and the experience of playing a game under the captaincy of Ravindra Jadeja.

Excerpts from Prerak Mankad's exclusive chat with Sportskeeda.

Q. Many congratulations on being a part of a stellar domestic season for Saurashtra. Winning both the Vijay Hazare Trophy and the Ranji Trophy in the same season must feel surreal right?

Prerak Mankad: Exactly. It’s quite surreal. We’re really happy that we became champions in the Vijay Hazare Trophy and again the Ranji Trophy, which is really remarkable for all of us.

Q. When you think Saurashtra, the stalwarts of the experience of Jaydev Unadkat, Cheteshwar Pujara and Ravindra Jadeja spring to mind. Yet, this team is beyond just a solitary name or two and hunts as a pack. What would you put that down to?

Prerak Mankad: All three big names, they all played. Jaddu bhai played one game, Puji bhai played a couple of games and JD bhai played four or five games. The unit is well-oiled and gelled together. The benchmark they have set for all of us, the way they play for Saurashtra, the culture they set for all the youngsters, all the seasoned players as well to be on top of your performance at all times.

If you look at the season, we didn’t rely on a single player. All the players contributed to bowling, batting, and fielding. Jaddu bhai, Puji bhai, and JD bhai have set benchmarks.

JD bhai has especially set the benchmark and the way he converses with each and every one of us, we can’t describe it in words because we get a lot of confidence because of him. He showed faith in all of us and he gives us the belief and security that we belong here and that we will do better for our team.

The first thing that all the Saurashtra players do is play for the team. That stood out for me. I’m not saying no player doesn’t play to win for the team but in Saurashtra, they back each other, believe in each other and we’ve really gelled together in the last four to five years.

Q. How was it like being around Ravindra Jadeja and playing under his captaincy in the game against Tamil Nadu? Was there anything, in particular, he spoke to you about?

Prerak Mankad: He last played for Saurashtra in 2017. He came back to the side after four or five years and he told all of us that it feels totally different from 10 years ago.

The vision, the attitude, and energy, he could sense that it wasn’t there 10 years ago. He said that he wanted to maintain the intensity, energy, and attitude for the next five or 10 years and we will try and transfer this to the next generation.

He told us to play as fearlessly as we could and try and express ourselves on the field. He just wanted us to be as expressive as we can. That’s the one thing he said throughout the course of the game. No matter what the result would be, we have to be as positive and expressive as we can.

Q. Personally, you had a mixed bag in terms of returns, yet you always stepped up when your team needed you the most under pressure, be it with the 88 in the quarter-finals against Punjab, or the pivotal 33 in the final against Bengal. Is that how you see yourself - as a player who gets going when the going gets tough?

Prerak Mankad: That’s one thing that I have to be good at - I have to deliver consistent performances with the bat and the ball. I did well when the team needed it the most. That’s a good thing that I do well when the team is under pressure, but I just want to perform more consistently across formats.

It wasn't just the Ranji Trophy, if you look at my Vijay Hazare Trophy and T20 performances as well it wasn’t as good as last season. I want to be more consistent in the Ranji Trophy. It's not like when things go easy for the team, you are not able to perform with the bat and ball. I have to be more disciplined about my innings to do well when the situation is easy as well and you can capitalize on that particular day.

First of all, I have to thank the management and the association and in particular the leaders like JD bhai and Arpit (Vasavada) bhai who gave not just me but all of a good run. I didn’t do well in the league stage - I scored just one fifty against Delhi and a couple of crucial cameos against Mumbai in that low-scoring game. But I have to give credit to the management as well for showing faith in me.

Once you get backed by the coaches, captain, and seniors, that energy certainly pushes you to do well under pressure situations, particularly on the big day and in a knockout match. In the end, you are the one who is in the middle and has to perform but it helped me that the management and the captain backed me at that particular time.

Q. Where do you think this Saurashtra outfit stands in comparison to teams that have dominated the domestic circuit in the last decade or so? Is it fair to say you’ve been the standout in this period?

Prerak Mankad: I’m not saying that we are beyond them but you can see that the way we have been playing in the last four to five seasons - not just in the Ranji Trophy but in the white ball tournaments - we have been qualifying for the last three seasons. We have been doing well in the Vijay Hazare Trophy as well.

In the T20s as well, we did well in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. We qualified last year as well. Season by season, players improve skillwise and as a unit, we are also improving and you can see that in our performances.

I’m not saying we are above all of them, but you can see that these are the teams that are the best on the domestic circuit. We have been doing well but those teams are also not as consistent as we are right now. We will try and do the same in the future as well.

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Is the Saurashtra outfit that Mankad is part of the best domestic team in India at the moment? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below!

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