Mumbai Indians ought to go into Wednesday’s match against Kolkata Knight Riders with their confidence sky-high. After all, our head-to-head record against the Knights is 17-5. And we have beaten them in each of our last seven match-ups, including the first-leg fixture last Sunday. However, all-rounder JP Duminy made it categorically clear that the team will treat the contest as a fresh start. There is no room for complacency and our boys can’t afford to take the foot off the pedal as they continue their quest to secure a spot in the playoffs of the 2018 VIVO IPL.

“Yes, we have some great success against KKR. But it’s always about the performance on the day. Yes, we can have some good success. But, for me, that doesn’t play any part in tomorrow’s game. It’s a fresh start. If you think about (the result on) last Sunday, we played against them and had success. But, it’s about how are you going to approach tomorrow’s game. Yes, you gain confidence and a little bit of momentum going into it. However, if you walk out to bat first and lose two wickets in the first over, your past record has nothing to do with that. So, you have got to make sure you’re aware of what is in front of you. And, you must try and execute your skills as best as possible,” Duminy told mediapersons at Eden Gardens on Tuesday evening.

Speaking of Hardik Pandya, who has 14 wickets this season, Duminy said, “He has been exceptional to watch. I’ve played against him a few times. Now I have also played with him. He’s an exceptional talent. He’s one of those characters who backs himself in pressure moments. Those are the kind of players you need, especially at this time in the tournament. You would like those pressure-moment players to step up and execute things with the best use of their abilities. I think the way he has executed things has been exceptional. The way he stays calm under pressure is great. He has the same sort of demeanour whether he tastes success or failure. And that is great to see.”

Acknowledging that Wednesday’s clash will be crucial for both teams, Duminy said the boys are ready for battle. “Yeah, we have prepared pretty well. There were two rest days. So, it has been pretty relaxing,” he said, adding that the team knows what it takes to be up and ready for a series of must-win games.

“There are two ways you can look at it. You can see it as your backs against the wall. There’s just one way to go and that is the way you play cricket and try to achieve what you’re trying to achieve. Or, you can try and duck in doubt and shy away from the pressure. But I think what has been great about our team is that we have stood up and recognised that we need to take responsibility. After all, we are the ones that are going to change the team’s fortunes around. We want to play an aggressive brand of cricket. We want to take the bull by the horns. We always want to try and win every game. No matter what happens, as long as we walk off the field knowing that we have given our best, that’s what we can ask from each other,” he explained.

Duminy said that garnering momentum is the key in a long tournament like this. MI go into the match with two back-to-back wins for the first time this season. “Momentum is the key. This is the first time in the tournament that we have won back-to-back games. There’s no doubt that we’ll take a lot of confidence out of it. Having said that, it’s a fresh game. It’s a fresh start and we can’t be looking at the past. We can’t be looking at our past success. We are going to make sure what is in front of us and what challenges are in front of us. Kolkata are going to come back fighting. They are also in a position where they need to win a few games and gain a little momentum for themselves. They are going to try to put their best foot forward and play their best cricket. So, we are going to make sure that we work smart and try to execute our skills. We had a good discussion on our plans. Those plans are fresh in our minds. We know how we want to go about it. It is again about repeating those plans and strategies and be a little clever about how we want to go about it,” Duminy said.

Duminy rued the team’s troubles with the bat in the middle and death overs. “It’s time to execute our skills in all our games. We know that there are certain areas we can improve with the bat, ball and on the field as well. It’s about identifying those areas and finding solutions in terms of how we want to improve. I think that’s the crucial part. I found that there’s no point in just identifying the problem. There needs to be a solution for this. What has been good in last few weeks is that we have focused on solutions. If we can have that mindset and identify those areas, I think we can get better. Those are internal discussions that we will continue to have for the next couple of games,” Duminy said.

Asked how the team manages to keep calm in pressure situations, Duminy said, “For me, it’s quite simple. Try and take it one game at a time. Also, what sticks out when there’s external pressure on you is sticking to the basics. Whether you’re batting, bowling or fielding, try and execute your plans as best as possible, control the things that you can control. We can’t control the outside pressure, we can’t control what people are writing about us or saying about us. What you can control is what you think. What we can control is what body language we display on the field and in front of the general public, and what we say to the general public. I think those are the things that are in our control. The way we play, the conversations we have, those are the things in our control. If we can focus on that, we give ourselves that chance of performing under pressure,” he added.