Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) has played a major role in Shivam Mavi’s career. The fast bowler from Uttar Pradesh spent five years with the franchise and developed his game under the tutelage of some of the finest cricket coaches in the world.
KKR’s hand in Shivam Mavi’s batting development
Mavi always had batting ability, but it required honing. Although he wants to play under MS Dhoni at the Chennai Super Kings, he didn’t shy away from praising current KKR head Abhishek Nayar. Mavi was with the 5-time champions from 2018 to 2022 and worked with Nayar, who was the head of the KKR Academy during this period.
His batting didn’t progress like he would have wanted, but it seems to have come of age now. Mavi struck his maiden first-class hundred against Nagaland earlier in the month. He also took a 5-wicket haul in the match. In the next game against Tamil Nadu, he hit a half-century. Mavi’s batting is clicking now, but the journey started all the way back with KKR.
“I’ve worked with Nayar bhai. He used to help me improve my batting. Rinku used to practise at the KKR academy, and I was present there as well. He’s helped quite a bit during those days. He trained my batting, keeping match scenarios in mind. Helped me understand how to navigate things when a bowler might target a particular weakness of mine,” Mavi told InsideSport in an exclusive interview.
Learnings from Bhuvneshwar Kumar & Rinku Singh
Although Mavi’s batting has improved, he remains a fast bowler at heart. Luckily for him, he’s got two of the finest Indian players by his side in domestic cricket. Bhuvneshwar Kumar, who was a vital player in the Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s title run in IPL 2025, has been mentoring him.
“We converse about what a bowler’s mindset or tactics should be in certain situations. It’s not like I have to ask him; he often comes to me and suggests what I can do. He advises me on what variations I could use, keeping the pitch in mind,” he shared.
The other one is Rinku Singh. The southpaw isn’t just Mavi’s teammate at Uttar Pradesh. They’ve been friends since they used to play Under-19 together and then shared the KKR dressing room for years. Mavi shared that he often asks Rinku about what a batter’s mindset would be in a specific match scenario and takes note of his advice as one of the best death hitters.
“We’ve played together since our under-19 days. We have great bonding. He’s been playing for India for some time now, so I seek his perspective as a batter. During matches, if things don’t go right, later I ask him what I could’ve done better, and he helps me understand things from a batter’s point of view,” Mavi told InsideSport.
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