Rajasthan Royals English batsman Liam Livingstone aspires to have a successful Test career, but he doesn’t mind being “nomadic” to T20s and would prefer to spend his time building the white-ball brand rather than making it big. can make or not. One of the most sought after T20 freelancers in world cricket having played in the Big Bash League and Pakistan Super League, the 28-year-old is now expected to carry the batting load of Rajasthan Royals. With Sanju Samson during the Indian Premier League which resumes this Sunday in the UAE.
Unlike a lot of cricketers who will try to give politically correct answers to questions regarding Test cricket, Livingstone has no hesitation in getting straight. He has not yet made his debut in Test cricket. “Yes of course (on being T20 nomads). You now have two paths in the world of cricket. Even if you can’t make it as a red ball cricketer, you can still travel the world and be a part of a lot of franchise competitions,” Livingstone said in an interview.
Coming into the IPL after some stellar performances in ‘The Hundred’ for Birmingham Phoenix, Livingstone aspires to build a brand and fan base of his own to play the shortest format.
“Hopefully in the next few years, I can travel the world and play in franchise league cricket. The best part is to keep coming back to the same franchise over and over again, building up a fan base of your own and building friendships that last a lifetime.
“Hopefully I can do that in franchise cricket for years,” said the man, who recently hit the international stage after scoring a 42-ball century against Pakistan in a T20 International in Nottingham.
There have been some prolific white-ball players like David Warner and even before him Virender Sehwag, who made waves in the shorter formats and then went on to have a quality career in Test cricket.
Livingstone does not believe in taking the IPL route as wearing England whites is not on his radar when asked about the Ashes.
“I have a really big IPL coming up and then the T20 World Cup. Test cricket is not something that I am thinking about and my target in the next few months is to win the IPL and the T20 World Cup and see that What happens from there?
“I will definitely not play IPL to pursue my case in Test cricket. These kinds of things take care of themselves and whatever happens, it will happen.”
Livingstone has had a mediocre first-class career for Lancashire with 62 appearances and an average of 38 over seven centuries.
“I really enjoy red ball cricket and when I come back home I play as much as I can,” he said.
But at the same time he admitted that paucity of time is an issue as he is on the road during the T20 league.
“I didn’t get as much chance as I wanted and I still have dreams of playing Test cricket but with our schedule these days, there is not much time to play red ball cricket which is a shame.
“My strength has become white ball cricket and these days you cling to your strength. Hopefully one day I will fulfill my dream of playing Test cricket.”
“I Withdrew From Bubble Life Because I Wasn’t Fresh Last Time”
Livingstone withdrew during the first leg of the tournament in India when he complained of bubble fatigue and left his Mumbai team base home.
He is feeling a little more fresh this time.
“Last time was very different as we were stuck in a hotel room in Mumbai and I was already five to six months away from home during winters. It’s different because I’ve spent a lot of time at home over the last few months and it’s nice to be refreshed.”
“I felt a lot more refreshed than last time. Also, in Dubai, we’ve got a little more outdoor space and anticipate we can get out a little bit more than we could in the middle of Mumbai.
“So last time, I made the right decision and that’s why I feel a lot more refreshed this time.”
10 of us will prepare well for World T20
The IPL will have 10 England cricketers going to the World T20 including captain Eoin Morgan and it will be a huge advantage going into the showpiece.
“There is no better preparation than playing a match on the pitches you will be playing the World T20 and I think that is a good part of it.
“We have a lot of our people coming to play competitive cricket till the World Cup and there will be 10 of us who will be here,” he said.
“…Hopefully I can perform for the Royals and take the team to the play-offs,” Livingstone said of his franchise, who are fifth on the table with six points from seven matches. Is.
“My fearlessness has a lot to do with the transformation of England”
Livingstone, who has hit 234 sixes in just 149 T20Is so far, feels the change in England’s approach to white-ball cricket also helped when he was shaping himself up for the big leagues.
“I think my game has really changed in the last one year and the white ball philosophy of English cricket has changed around 2016. So yes, the change in his philosophy helped me be fearless and around us. It is really nice to have such an atmosphere.
“That’s why we have so many good white-ball cricketers. So I am happy to have the freedom to go there and protest.”
“There is no added pressure to perform, but I would love to continue my ‘hundred’ form.”
Livingstone is happy that his white ball exploits are being talked about.
He said, ‘I don’t think there is any pressure and it was good to perform in such a way that people started talking about me. It was good for England and Birmingham to have some match-winning performances at The Hundred.”
He wants to replicate the same for the Royals and follow it up for England in the T20 World Cup.
“I think you want that kind of form when it comes to IPL and World Cup. Hopefully I can continue this in the IPL.”
RR has a great set-up even without Stokes, Archer and Butler
Rajasthan Royals will certainly miss Ben Stokes, Jofra Archer and Jos Buttler but Livingstone has faith in other players in the team.
“We have a very good core of overseas players. Whatever the team, I still believe that we have real quality and young domestic (India) talent in it, which gives a good look to the team.”
get all IPL news and cricket score Here
.