NEW DELHI: Karnataka speedster Prasidh Krishna is busy packing his bags. He is going to be a new face in the Indian pace armoury for the upcoming three-match one-day international (ODI) series against England, starting March 23.
Apart from Prasidh, all-rounder Krunal Pandya and Suryakumar Yadav also earned their maiden ODI call-ups in India’s 18-member squad for the three-match series. All three ODIs will be played in Pune, starting March 23. India won the Test series 3-1 and T20I series 3-2.
The 25-year-old Prasidh credited his domestic performances for the India call-up.
In the recently-concluded Vijay Hazare Trophy, Prasidh claimed 14 wickets in 7 matches, including one four-wicket haul. He did very well in the 2019-20 Vijay Hazare Trophy edition as well, bagging 17 wickets in 8 matches, including one five-wicket haul.
“I am excited. I would like to give credit to my domestic performances. I had an idea that I would be picked. When you do well, you get the reward. I am really thankful to the selectors who have shown their faith in me. I want to thank the Karnataka team as well,” Prasidh told TImesofindia.com in an exclusive interview.

Prasidh will be part of India’s squad for the ODI series against England – Instagram Photo
WHEN VIRAT PRAISED PRASIDH
While Prasidh is yet to make his international debut, interestingly, his name was the top trend in January last year.
After the Indore T20I vs Sri Lanka, which India won by 7 wickets, Virat Kohli had called Prasidh a “surprise package” for the ICC World T20 this year, which at that time was scheduled to be played in Australia.
“I think one guy will be a surprise package. Someone who can bowl with pace and has bounce. Prasidh Krishna has done well in the domestic arena,” Kohli had said after that match vs Sri Lanka, while talking about team composition for the T20 World Cup this year, indicating that Krishna was very much in India’s scheme of things.
On being asked about Virat’s praise 14 months ago, Prasidh thanked captain Virat for showing faith in him.
“I am so excited to play under Virat Kohli. He is one of the best players in the world. He is one of the best captains in the world. His words meant a lot to me. His words gave me a lot of confidence. My focus is now the ODI series against England. I am not thinking anything other than this,” Prasidh told TimesofIndia.com.

Prasidh plays for Karnataka in the domestic circuit – Instagram Photo
WAITING FOR HIS CHANCE
The 25-year-old Prasidh, who has 34 wickets in 9 first-class matches and 81 wickets in 48 List A matches for Karnataka, is also excited to share the ball with the likes of Shardul Thakur and Bhuvneshwar Kumar, if he is given a chance in the upcoming three match series against the three Lions.
“Indian team is dominating under his (Virat’s) captaincy and doing so well. To be a part of this team will be so wonderful. Shardul, Bhuvneshwar have been magnificent in the series. I am eager to share the ball with them,” he said.
“India have been dominant against England. They won the Test series and now the T20I series. I am sure India will win the ODI series too. India have been doing really well in 50 overs cricket. In the T20I series, India were put under pressure but look at the way they made a comeback. India have match winners and players who can turn the game on its head. It shows how good we are. I will hope to continue the same form,” the Karnataka pacer further said.
TRAINING UNDER JEFF THOMSON & GLENN MCGRATH
Prasidh is one of the Indian bowlers who has the ability to bowl at 145 kmph plus and the Karnataka lad credits Australian pace legends Jeff Thomson and McGrath for helping him hone his skills.
Prasidh was one of the players who participated in the high-intensity training program at Cricket Australia’s Centre of Excellence under the mentorship of Thomson. Under the legendary Thomson, Prasidh learnt the art of honing raw pace.

Prasidh credits IPL for giving him exposure – Agency Photos
After collecting a bagful of bowling knowledge from Thomson, Prasidh spent a lot of time at the MRF pace academy in Chennai as well, where he was trained by another Aussie great, Glenn McGrath.
“I learnt a lot from Thomson and McGrath. The best thing they taught me was how to keep calm and perform under pressure. Composure is something I really believe in. And, I want to keep it going in the same way,” the 25 year old who was born in Bengaluru told TimesofIndia.com.
THE IPL PLATFORM
While bowling stints under the guidance and mentorship of Thosmson and McGrath helped Prasidh understand the nuances of fast bowling, the IPL gave him the platform to test those skills against some of the best batsmen in the world, while sharing dressing room and on field space with international quality fast bowlers.
“At Kolkata Knight Riders, I got a lot of exposure. I learnt how to bowl in crunch situations. You get to play alongside world-class bowlers. You share your knowledge under one roof. You rub shoulders with star bowlers. This helped me learn a lot,” Prasaidh further said.

Instagram Photo
With the likes of Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Shardul Thakur, Mohammed Siraj and T Natarajan also in the squad for the ODIs vs England, whether Prasidh will get a chance to play or not is anyone’s guess. But if he does get a game, he will know that he needs to start performing from the word go if he wants to impress the selectors and team management further at a time when the competition amongst fast bowlers for a spot in the Indian playing XI is at an all time high.
The upcoming 14th edition of the IPL will also give Prasidh a big platform to showcase his skills once again with the Kolkata Knight Riders, in the run up to the T20 World Cup later this year.