Ahead of the second T20I against Afghanistan, India all-rounder Shivam Dube expressed his keenness to play for India in the T20 World Cup and said he does not want to look too far, wants to take one game at a time.
India's star batter Virat Kohli Kohli is set to return for the second T20I in Indore on Sunday after missing the opening match of the series due to personal reasons. In the opener of the series, India registered a 6-wicket win over Afghanistan.
"Anyone who plays for the country wants to feature in the World Cup. It's there in mind to play the T20 World Cup as well, but it's far away now. At the moment, I am aiming for the match we are playing tomorrow. That's what my process is - to take it one game at a time," Dube said in a pre-match press conference on Saturday.
In the Mohali match against Afghanistan, Dube shone with both bat and ball as he smashed an unbeaten 60 and claimed a wicket.
"It's difficult when things don't go your way. You cannot do anything about it. I practised hard, followed a process to get better and worked on the mental and physical aspects," he added.
"IPL will be very important" - Shivam Dube
With the T20 World Cup six months away, Dube feels that more playing time will benefit the Indian players.
"The more you play T20s, the better idea you get about the combination, so it's important for all the players and the team. IPL will be very important along with the last two matches of the Afghanistan series. IPL is a big platform, if you do well there, you get a chance to make it to the Indian team," he said.
India's Squad for three T20Is against Afghanistan: Rohit Sharma (Captain), Shubman Gill, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Virat Kohli, Tilak Varma, Rinku Singh, Jitesh Sharma (wk), Sanju Samson (wk), Shivam Dube, Washington Sundar, Axar Patel, Ravi Bishnoi, Kuldeep Yadav, Arshdeep Singh, Avesh Khan and Mukesh Kumar.
