Kotian turned to former India spinner Sunil Joshi at the Centre of Excellence (CoE) in Bengaluru and to former India and Mumbai batter Jatin Paranjape in Mumbai.
“I have been using the crease now really well with the angles, bowling over the wicket, around the wicket for righty as well as for the lefty [batters],” Kotian said in Mumbai, of the things he has worked on recently. “And also I am working on the pace, which pace is effective on [which] wickets. And with the variations, I think the arm ball, which I have worked on with the new ball. In the Duleep Trophy also I started with the new ball and I think I have worked on that and I have shown that in the practice as well, with the arm ball and straighter one. So, I think it will be more effective when I get the new ball, to work with that hard ball on the surface.
“I am performing but there is no disappointment,” he said of not making his Test debut yet. “I see how I can win games for my team by performing in each and every match. And wherever I get the opportunity, whether it is India A or Duleep Trophy, there I can showcase myself and show what talent I have. Like in fielding, I try to give my 100%. So, I just try to tick the boxes, the rest is up to the selectors and I will wait for that opportunity…when it comes, I will grab that chance.”
“Yeah, it’s important for me to keep performing in each and every game,” he said. “Because I have been doing that, I have that mindset to perform in bowling and batting, both aspects, whether in the pressure situation or if the team is in a good situation. But I think for me, it’s better to go out there and give my best each and every inning. And score how much I can and take wickets for the team as much as I can.
“Yeah, I am more equipped 1791652230 and every year is something special for me. I bring something and I try it directly in the games, but I feel that I am confident. I have that four-five years’ experience now. So, I have evolved a lot.”
Kotian currently has 146 first-class wickets at an average of 27.19 since he made his debut in December 2018. He has featured in the Duleep Trophy four times in the last five seasons, has scored a half-century and century in the Irani Cup last year, was part of the SMAT-winning squad two years ago with an economy rate of 7.44 in a high-scoring tournament, but the one platform that has evaded him is the IPL.
“Most of the players [we] are seeing, the exposure they are getting from IPL and they are getting picked for the Indian team, that is a platform,” Kotian said. “So, playing there and staying there consistently and performing there is also an exposure. You can show your skills in white ball as well. In the IPL, because I was not in the scheme of things, I was seen more in red ball. In white ball, in the Mumbai team as well, the batting order is completely deep, so you don’t get many chances to bat down the order, so you don’t get that much exposure. And, in white ball, bowling as a offspinner, sometimes it will be like three-four overs. So, I’m not getting that much exposure and in IPL teams as well, I have gone to many trials, this time also many teams have called me for trials, but I was busy in matches. But, that is that, if you get picked in the IPL, that will be a different platform, that you will get a chance there and you will get a platform to prove there.”
