The national selectors entrusted Mavi with the captaincy of the Central Zone in the domestic season opener.

It was a huge vote of confidence for the 24-year-old player from Madhya Pradesh, highlighting his position as one of the top candidates on the waiting list.

I am very happy about it. The selectors have given me such a big responsibility. It (captaincy) is difficult for fast bowlers in India because fast bowlers get tired here because of the conditions.

But here (in Bangalore) the conditions are great and we don’t get as tired. I played in England and the weather here is very similar. We have time to think as a captain, Mavi said.

Mavi did well as captain without compromising his bowling game. Of the six wickets, three were to Cheteshwar Pujara, Suryakumar Yadav and Sarfaraz Khan who broke West’s middle order.

In fact, Mavi took nine wickets in the last three innings. Simplicity, Mavi says, is the mantra of his success.

It doesn’t matter to me who the batsman is. What matters to me is to bowl in the right areas, and if I know I can do it, I will get feints, Mavi explains.

However, Mavi had to wait three months or so to return to the field after playing a T20I for India in Ahmedabad against New Zealand in February this year.

He did not get a single game in IPL 2023 despite being in the Gujarat Titans squad. Has it been difficult for him to stay. We’re going to play with this system.

It helps us to know the amount of exertion – how many kilometers we have traveled, how many steps we have taken in a day, etc. It’s good for us, he said.