Badrinath confident of making it count

Subramaniam Badrinath, a certainty in India's 16-man West Indies-bound ODI squad which will be picked today, has fought perceptions of being a classic first-class batsman ufffd a poorer version of Rahul Dravid.

Badrinath has played a pivotal role in Chennai Super Kings' eight wins thus far, striking at close to 134.00. In nine innings following last night's tie against Delhi, he has scored 349 runs at an average of 87, including five half centuries in winning causes for the defending champions.

Subramaniam Badrinath

He's had to change his game to seal a permanent spot in Super Kings' strong middle-order.u00a0 Badrinath's low grip, ability to use the depth of the crease, and play most unorthodox possible strokes, have resulted in his evolution to a reliable limited-overs batsman. He credits IPL for his evolution: "It forced me to evolve my game. I learnt that it's all about improvising and playing according to a situation. If the side needs 10 runs per over, I know I have the game now to do the job," Badrinath told MiD DAY.

"For me, it's all about using a bowler's pace to my advantage. Over the last few years, I have worked hard, done a lot of research.

"Having scored tons of runs in first-class cricket, I realised IPL performances were important because of high viewer ship,u00a0 and level of pressure. I was always told that my batting was too slow for limited-overs cricket," said the 30-year old, before adding that his sound basics made it easier to improvise."

He had drifted from the selectors' radar since playing three one-day internationals in Sri Lanka in 2008, but his performance in the ongoing IPL have made it impossible for selectors to look past him. "Badrinath has been in impeccable form, and the captain (MS Dhoni) is very pleased with his game. He deserves to be selected," a member of nationalu00a0 selection committee told MiD DAY.

"If I get selected, I will definitely try to make an impact," Badrinath concluded.