Shikhar Mohan, another boy from Ranchi, who is making himself count

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The second season is always more important because the opposition knows more about you. Teams analyse your strengths and weaknesses, so you have to keep improving.

During the Duleep Trophy final in Chennai, Ishan bhai helped me understand which shots were appropriate for those conditions. For example, he told me there was no need to play the sweep shot in certain situations. He helped me understand what to play and what to avoid. That guidance made a big difference when I was building my innings.

Before facing a ball, I talk to myself. I remind myself to watch the ball and stay focused. That has helped me a lot. Ishank Jaggi bhai also helped me with this, especially when he was with the Under-19 team. I started concentrating more and focusing on one ball at a time. That approach has really helped me.

I remember a match against Uttar Pradesh at the Under-19 level. I was batting on 20 when a ball hit me on the chest. I went off the field and returned after we lost two wickets. We were chasing a target of 400 on the final day, and I scored an unbeaten 100. We fell 40 runs short when the day ended. That innings remains very special to me.