You made your Test debut and did well on foreign soil this year. Take us through your season…

It’s been a very good year for me. I fulfilled my long-standing dream of representing India in Test cricket. We had a fantastic tour of South Africa. We became the first team in the history of Indian cricket to win an ODI series on South African soil. We also won the Twenty20 International series. It has been a great learning experience. Also, we won the Vivo IPL last year. So, I have a lot of fond memories.

You are known for your variations with the ball, especially in the death overs. And you obviously work very hard. Is there anything specific that you would like to improve on before the start of the Vivo IPL?

No, there’s nothing specific as such. That said, I will continue to work hard on my bowling and the consistency factor. I am also working on my body and taking care of my diet.

This year, we have Pat Cummins and Mustafizur Rahman in the squad. Add to the mix the players we have retained, and you probably have the most lethal bowling unit in the Vivo IPL. What are your thoughts?

Every bowler in the unit comes with different skill sets. All our seam bowlers are different. The strengths wary from bowler to bowler. Some are left-armers and some are right-armers, so it all helps. Also, I have played with Mitch (Mitchell McClenaghan). We know each other. As a bowling unit, we always talk to each other. And we will look to work on the plans that have been discussed before. We try and help each other. I hope we will be able to repeat those things this year as well.

There are some new faces and some old faces in the team. Is there someone in particular that you are looking forward to playing with?

It’s just that whenever I am back with the Mumbai Indians, I enjoy it. It feels good when the Vivo IPL season comes around. I am eagerly looking forward to it.

What are your personal goals for the season?

I don’t set personal goals. Instead, I take it one match at a time. Right now, I am looking forward to the first match. I am looking at the things that need to be done before the season opener. If you don’t take it one match at a time, then you end up putting yourself under a lot of pressure. That’s because you look at the entire workload of the season. The idea is to have short-term goals. You keep ticking the boxes. And you keep moving ahead.

What’s your opinion on the MI Emojis? And how often do you use emojis during your personal conversations online?

I don’t use emojis because I don’t text much. But I did have a chance to look at the MI Emojis. They are really funny. I think it’s a great way to interact with people.