Neither on the pitch, nor with the ball in his hand. But in the dressing room - where the man he had watched and admired for his talismanic skills was suddenly just a few feet away from him. Ostwal, 23, is in his debut season with RCB after having spent three years with Delhi Capitals.

He had heard all about RCB - the robust culture, good people in the set-up, and fans shouting ‘Aar-cee-bee’ in chorus at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in the first game (and soon against the Chennai Super Kings on Sunday night). Ostwal was ready for most of it, but was not quite ready for his meeting with Kohli.

“For me, just seeing him for the first time was surreal. I didn't have the guts to talk to him in the first meeting. But as we practiced together, I spoke to him a lot about my tactical bowling mindset and how I should be bowling in T20 games and what balls work against him and what he does to counter the bowlers very well. Also, what can a bowler do to counter the batter,” said Ostwal, in an exclusive conversation with IANS, facilitated by JSW Sports.

It did not stay that way for long. Practice has a way of breaking the ice between stalwarts and youngsters, and as Ostwal began bowling to Kohli in the nets, the conversations started.

“I have had some great chats with him regarding this mindset and tactic thing and he has been helping me a lot about that.

“Whenever I bowl to him, I just try and have a chat after my bowling is finished. Then he gives me insights of what went wrong with you and what you could have done better and what you did good as well. I had some good healthy chats with him and that helps me a lot,” he added.

The arrangement that usually followed was Ostwal would bowl to Kohli and the debrief would happen right after that.

The central idea, Ostwal says, from Kohli is about being proactive rather than reactive and thinking one step ahead of what a batter would aim to do.

“In things like T20, when you are bowling against a good player, you always need to be one step ahead. So, I used to always ask him - how can you be ahead of the game always? He used to give me insights like, ‘Just see how the batter is playing and what kind of shots he wants to play against you.’ So, you observe that and you don't bowl the ball that he wants you to bowl.

“You bowl something different, back yourself to bowl that ball and then you deliver it and you try to execute it on that given time.

By doing that thing, you can be one step ahead. If you think that you don't know, then you stick to your basics. You back your strength; you back yourself that whatever you have done up till now is the best.

“That's why you are here - so, you do that and then the batsman will play his own shot. If you think that you have got your batter in a zone where you want him to be, then you back yourself and bowl the ball that he doesn't want to play much. So, that I think helps a lot, especially in a T20 game, when you have to be accurate every ball or you have to be proactive every ball.

So, that is the kind of conversation we usually have,” he elaborated.

Kohli isn't the only senior pro reshaping Ostwal, who terms being a bowling all-rounder as his ‘best version’. Krunal Pandya, his senior left-arm spin bowling all-rounder and multiple IPL winner with a reputation for rising exactly when the pressure peaks, has become another figure Ostwal studies closely.

“He knows what it takes to win the IPL and what performances you need to put in to win the game and how can you be clutch in those moments and how can you perform in crunch situations? He is a player who shines under pressure and that's what a good player can do for your team or that's what a team looks for in you.

“That is the kind of thing I want to learn from him and how can he do these kind of things under pressure. In crunch situations, he always steps up and brings his A game. So, that is something I really admire about him and that's what I want to learn,” he said.

What Ostwal finds most fascinating about Krunal, though, is not the experience, but bringing the imagination in bowling – either a yorker, bouncer or even a round-arm slinging ball. “He is very creative about those things. Even last year, we have seen him bowling bouncers - that is not very regular. So, he is very creative and he knows that IPL is such a game that even if you get one ball of your quota of overs (is a dot ball), it's just like gold.

“So, he knows that something or the other way, he will do something to trick the batsman into his trap and he will get a wicket or he can get a dot ball. So, I think he is very creative and he is very smart in those kind of things,” he said.

Away from serious cricket conversations, Ostwal has found an unlikely off-field friend in Venkatesh Iyer. “Despite him being a very senior guy to me, he is very friendly and very open. He likes to have fun around with me and we get along well.

“We also play table tennis or PS5 together sometimes. So, him being a senior, I was a little hesitant talking to him in the initial days. But when I got to know him more than how good of a guy he is, I got along with him much better and then we started to hang out more.”

Ostwal's path to RCB was built across years of domestic toil. Being the leading wicket-taker in India winning the U-19 Asia Cup and 2022 U-19 World Cup is something he terms as "one of the biggest moments of my life". It opened the door for Ostwal to be in DC's setup. But the years between that high and now were not all smooth.

There was a difficult period of uncertainty as he tried to establish himself at the senior level. His answer was to go bag wickets and make big runs in the U-23 circuit, with Ostwal recently earning the MA Chidambaram Award for being the leading wicket-taker in the CK Nayudu Trophy in 2024/25.

"The U-23 games had a big, big role in my life because after the U19 World Cup, I did struggle for a year or so to make my mark in the senior team. But last season when I played U-23, I had a complete motto of dominating and being the highest wicket-taker in India. I had thought about that since when I started playing the games.

"I was very grateful and happy that I could pick wickets and was the highest wicket-taker. Also, I scored 100s and 250s and that's what gave me this full run for the Maharashtra Ranji team this year."

That form carried into the Ranji Trophy, where he picked up 23 wickets in seven games, supplemented by eight and seven scalps in the Vijay Hazare and Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy respectively.

“Playing all three formats every game this year was a big thing for me and that's the kind of thing that as a player you want from your association to do. I was grateful this year that I got the opportunity to play all three formats and got a complete run in the whole season.

“Also, I don't think I did anything extraordinary. But yes, I did well for my team. I picked some fifers in the red ball and was very accurate in T20 and one-day, where I was very good and economical. In the red ball, I also picked some fifers and was in the top wicket takers for Maharashtra. So, all in all, it was a good season for me.”

The question hovering over Ostwal is when he gets to play an IPL game and he spoke how it is a matter of grabbing the chance at the right time. “I have spoken about this too a lot and everybody says that everyone has his own destiny.

“You just keep working hard and one day or the other, you will get your chance and when you get it, you just try and grab it with both hands. So, I am not rushing into things. I am not being fuzzy about it, but I just want to work hard and I believe that my time will come and whenever it comes, I will grab it with both hands.”

For now, the focus is entirely on RCB - a franchise he describes being a part of as a genuine blessing and a dressing room that challenges him daily, on and off the field. He joined a side that won the trophy last year.

Now Ostwal wants to be part of one that wins it again. With Kohli in his corner, breaking down his game ball by ball, he may just be in the right place at the right time. “It's a big blessing for me that I am a part of such a good franchise and such a good team surrounded by great players and great coaches.

For now, the focus is entirely on RCB - a franchise he describes being a part of as a genuine blessing and a dressing room that challenges him daily, on and off the field. He joined a side that won the trophy last year.

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“There are many aspects to work on yourself when you are around these great people. So, it always helps me and I always try to have some conversation with all of them and try to improve myself. Yes, 100 percent – that (winning the trophy again) is the dream and motto.”

Article Source: IANS