For a player who had bowled just 8.4 overs without a wicket in his IPL career, Naman Dhir could hardly have made a stronger case for his bowling. The Impact Player rule may have reduced his opportunities at Mumbai Indians, but the 26-year-old insisted he was ready.“I’ve been bowling for a long time. It’s not like I’ve just started. In IPL, yes, there’s an impact player rule, so you see me bowling less. But it’s not like I haven’t bowled, I’ve bowled a lot and I’ve had a great experience here too. I’ve got wickets, I hope I’ll keep doing well in the future,” he said after taking 3/31 on his T20I debut against West Indies in Lucknow.“IPL prepares you for international cricket. There’s a lot of competition there. So I guess if you’re playing IPL with a team like Mumbai Indians, then you’re prepared for a big level, so you don’t feel so much pressure coming here, as I feel right now,” he added.His performance also showed that the lack of bowling in the IPL had not left him short of match practice. Dhir said he has continued to bowl regularly in practice and is comfortable handling different workloads.“There’s an impact player rule in IPL. It’s not like I don’t practise; I practise there too. It’s the same here too. So there’s nothing new for me; if I get 4 overs, 2 overs, if I get 6 or 7 overs in one-day, there’s nothing new for me. It’s a normal thing for me. I just have to focus on my plans and try to execute them.”Dhir’s three wickets came after he watched Axar Patel bowl in the powerplay and felt the slower pace was helping him on the turning pitch.“I saw Axar bhai bowling in the powerplay, so he was bowling a little slow. It was turning. And in my mind, I thought if I bowl a little slow with the wicket gripping, I can get them out. So I just stuck to my basic plans and bowled, and I got good results,” he said.Story continues below this adThere was a personal side to the call-up too. Dhir was at the Ranji Trophy camp in the PCA when he got the news, having just come off a good tournament for himself and his team.“Obviously, it was a great feeling when I got the call. I was in the Ranji Trophy camp, in PCA, our tournament had just ended, a very good tournament had gone for me, for our team, so it was a surreal feeling. I was with my friends, so right away I called my father, he was emotional; I got a little emotional.”“Obviously, every kid has a dream to play for the country, so if you represent the country, if your name is mentioned in the team, it’s a big deal, especially, I am from a small town, so especially for me, no one has played from there yet, so it’s a big deal for me, it’s a big deal for the area around us.”Dhir also made it clear that while his batting may get more attention, he has continued to work hard on his bowling.Story continues below this ad“Even if you haven’t seen me bowl, but I’m bowling as much as I’ve come here; I’ve practised as much as I’ve come here, so it’s not like I’m a batting all-rounder or a bowling all-rounder, yes, my batting is a plus point, but at the same time, I’m working as hard as I’m bowling.”