Defending a total as low as 119 is always a tough task. It was, for table-toppers Chennai Super Kings, who had to put up a huge effort to do so against the Delhi Daredevils in Raipur. Their pacer, Ishwar Pandey put up a brave front as he led the attack in the absence of Ashish Nehra.

“The wicket wasn’t so easy. It was a bit two-paced. So Mahi bhai (MS Dhoni) told us to try and bowl in the good areas and try to bowl dot balls,” Pandey told iplt20.com while discussing the team’s bowling plan later.

Asked if they took heart from how DD, led by Zaheer Khan, had bowled and felt that they too could defend the total, he said, “Yes. Zaheer is a very experienced player and the way he bowls in T20 you can learn from him how to bowl, and what (type of deliveries to bowl) and when (to bowl particular deliveries).”

“The wicket wasn’t easy. We didn’t know what total we would be able to put up and so (when it came to defending) we were trying to bowl in the right areas,” he explained.

Speaking about the way his bowling has evolved, Pandey said, “I am backing myself. I have a natural outswinger and I am working more on that. I have also developed a slower one but I haven’t needed that yet because you can’t bowl slower ones in the beginning. So I try and bowl to my strengths, which is the outswinger.”

Talking about opening the bowling and his preparation for the powerplay overs, he said, “I have a very simple ‘funda’. I don’t think too much about what the batsman will do or will not do. I just try to bowl my best and according to the wicket.”

After picking up a wicket in his second and third overs, Pandey was bludgeoned for 20 runs by Yuvraj Singh and Shreyas Iyer in his final over. Reflecting on the testing times like that fourth over and how he copes with them, Pandey said, “In this format while you will have good overs, there will be times when you will be hit. You have to keep yourself calm and back yourself to be able to make a comeback. It is better if you are prepared (and accept) that it is going to happen.”

His captain, MS Dhoni too has played a supportive role, says Pandey. “He is very good. He doesn’t put any pressure on you. When you are hit for boundaries, he still backs you; he’ll walk up to you and say, ‘if you don’t get hit, how will you learn?’

Although they leave Raipur with a loss, CSK are perched comfortably at the top of the points table as the league stage of Pepsi IPL 2015 enters the final week. Looking back on CSK’s season so far, the pacer said, “We have a good team with very good players. Everyone is very supportive. We have had a few ups and downs. We lost today as well but we will look to make a strong comeback.”