India vs South Africa: We Need to Start Well Against Proteas, Says Stuart Binny

Stuart Binny's appearances for India has been sporadic despite being in the wrong side of 30's and that is precisely the reason Stuart Binny endorses his Test captain Virat Kohli's opinion that a player needs to get more chances to prove his mettle at the highest level. (ODI and T20I squads for South Africa series picked)

"As Virat (Kohli) said, if I get more opportunities, I would get better - that's very much true. It is not only more opportunities he gets, but also off-field preparations, that helps," the 31-year-old Binny said, on the second day of the camp for the Indian probables ahead of South Africa series.

Asked whether he has brought in changes in his game, the Karnataka veteran said that he hasn't made too many changes in skill work, but made changes in terms of tackling mental pressure.

"I haven't made too many changes when it comes to skill work, but I have made lot of changes when it comes to my game in my head," said Binny, who has played five Tests, 13 ODIs and two T20 Internationals in his short international career.

India all-rounder Stuart Binny said the upcoming India-South Africa series will be a hard-fought battle and made it clear he prefers bowling with new ball as he has the ability to swing the ball.

"We will be playing against a quality side, who are good in all formats of the game. It is going to be a great series. It is important that we start well in the series. It will be a hard-fought series," Binny said.

Replying to a query, Binny said he prefers bowling with a new ball, but enjoys bowling with semi-new and old ball too.

"Why I prefer to bowl in new ball is that I can swing the new ball. I do enjoy bowling with semi-new and old ball - it brings in different variations," he added.

Asked what role Mahendra Singh Dhoni and team director Ravi Shastri wants to see him adapt to, Binny said he is the squad to contribute with both bat and bowl.

"It is pretty simple. I got to contribute with both bat and ball, which is why I am in he team," he said.

As far his bowling is concerned, Binny said he knows this role pretty well and what needs to be done in different situations.

"I have been spoken about what should I should be doing when it comes to bowling. I know my role exactly - it may differ sometimes. It depends when I bowl - whether early on or later parts of the game," he said.

International cricket demands coping up with mental pressure which comes on the platter on larger scale compared to domestic level competitions like the Ranji Trophy matches, Binny said.

"International cricket is a lot of mental pressure. It is about dealing with situations which you have faced in Ranji Trophy, but it is on a much larger and bigger scale, so you have to go out and do the same in international cricket as well," he said.