New Zealand all-rounder Mitchell Santner has remarked that Indian Premier League (IPL) is the pinnacle of all T20 tournaments. Santner plies his trade for Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in the cash-rich league.
Although picked by CSK for Rs 50 lakh in IPL 2018, he didn’t play a single match that season due to bone-defect in his knees. Santner eventually made his debut against Rajasthan Royals (RR) in 2019.
“Yeah, the IPL, I guess, is the pinnacle of all T20 tournaments and I was pretty excited when I was picked up in 2018. There are some world-class spinners in Chennai to talk to and play with – guys like Harbhajan Singh, who I’ve watched a lot of, Ravindra Jadeja and Imran Tahir as well,” remarked Santner in his recent interview with ESPNCricinfo.
Santner further said that he was disappointed after missing the first year due to injury.
“When I got injured the first year, I was pretty disappointed, but I was given the opportunity last time around to go and experience it. It’s an unbelievable tournament and definitely the best cricket going around in terms of T20 leagues,” Santner asserted.
The 28-year-old said that it was a refreshing experience to share the dressing room with the likes of MS Dhoni and Suresh Raina.
“I’ve played against Dhoni a lot, so to share a dressing room with him and talk to him about how he goes about things was awesome. Even guys like Suresh Raina – you watched him from other teams you go with.”
“The IPL last year was a cool experience as well. It was the first time for me playing at a ground where it spins more, in Chennai, which is nice because you don’t have to do too much. You try and fire it into the wicket and let the wicket do the rest. I guess, for me, it’s about trying to adapt to the conditions as early as possible and find what will be the most attacking ball on each surface,” Santner concluded.
