Lucknow, April 22 (IANS) Lucknow Super Giants pacer Prince Yadav, the current holder of the Purple Cap in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026, said hitting the right lengths on a red-soil pitch has been crucial to his good performance against the Rajasthan Royals.

Yadav, along with Mohammed Shami and Mohsin Khan, picked two wickets each to keep RR to 159/6. He now has 13 wickets in seven games at an average of 16.76 and an economy rate of 8.38.

“It feels really good, but it will feel even better if we go on to win the match from here. Nothing different as such. I’m just doing what I know best. I’m sticking to my line and length, backing my strengths, and working with the two or three variations that I’ve added.

“Absolutely, because if we bowl even slightly short, it becomes easy for batters to hit boundaries. So on red soil, hitting the right length is very important,” Yadav said in a mid-innings chat with the broadcasters.

In the match, Prince ensured there was no middle-order recovery for RR as he dismissed skipper Riyan Parag, who holed out to long-on. He later removed Donovan Ferreira by having him caught at third man to leave RR reeling at 110/6.

A significant factor in Yadav’s rapid rise in IPL 2026 has been the mentorship by veteran seamer Shami. Yadav highlighted how Shami’s tactical interventions during high-pressure moments have bolstered his self-belief.

“Whenever I feel a bit under pressure or troubled, Shami bhai comes straight to me, explains things, and always gives me confidence. It’s just practice, and also a lot of credit goes to our coach. He’s a very good coach. We have practised a lot, and Bharat Arun Sir has also helped us a lot,” he added.

–IANS

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