Are you happy to get back to your wicket-keeping duties in the IPL?

•I played as a batsman briefly in the Indian team but I’m really happy to be back keeping wickets in the IPL. It’s my passion and I enjoy it. Even in Australia, I used to mix it up in the nets with batting. You could say that I concentrated 60 per cent on my batting and 40 per cent on my keeping. I am still the second wicketkeeper for the Indian team and I will keep in domestic matches whenever I get a chance.

You were India’s first T20 hero with a Man of the Match effort against South Africa. How important is this new opportunity for your career?

•I think T20 has come a long way, and changed completely now. It’s going be a new experience for me. I need to find a way to do well and, once I do that, I’ll take things from there. Hopefully, this IPL will change everything for me.

You have had some time to introspect on what went wrong for you to be out of the Indian side. What were the lessons learnt?

•You need to be strong mentally. You need to be pushing yourself; and you need to raise the bar consistently. That’s what has happened in Indian cricket at the moment — everybody has raised the bar so you need to raise your own and keep getting better.

Were you disappointed that your Test and one-day performance got overlapped and you lost your place?

•That was bound to happen. There’s so much of cricket happening that you can’t completely disassociate Test and one-day cricket. When you do well in Test cricket, you get picked for the one-day side and likewise when you don’t do well, there is a chance that you will be dropped. It’s a part of Indian cricket and you’ve got to get used to it.

Your adaptability was your strength but has it now become your weakness, given that you’re not being considered a specialist for any job?

•I really don’t, but it’s quite interesting. Everyone has an USP and I know that I have always got my runs quickly and paced my innings so what’s important for me is to find out what I am good at. I try and adapt because there are only few options for you in Indian cricket. Little avenues open for a cricketer — if I am asked whether I want to do a job, I’m happy to do it. If I can do that for a good period of time, it will be great. I’ve been doing it for short periods and I’ve fizzled out.

From a middle-order batsman you answered a crisis call to be an opener. With so many opening options now, are you having any rethink about your batting position?

•It’s tough to say. I just have to score runs whenever I get an opportunity. I don’t think I will be opening in T20, so I think I’ll take a call depending on what happens after the IPL.

How frustrating was it to spend three months in Australia without getting a proper game?

•I told myself that it’s better to be part of the Indian team than to be sitting at home and watching matches on television. To be part of the team is a great feeling. I always used to think as if I was playing a game and kept working hard. You find out areas where you need to improve and, when you have a space of three months, it’s important you get good hits in the nets.

You were the number one wicketkeeper on ‘A’ tours, ahead of Dhoni. How did the roles get reversed?

•Dhoni has really raised the bar in terms of batting style for wicketkeepers in Indian cricket. He came as a whiff of fresh air. He was good and is getting better every day. When a person like that comes, you need to keep raising your bar to compete with him.

We are all trying to do that and he’s better than all of us.