Rashid Khan has a simple way of not inviting pressure. The leg-break bowler never thinks he is the best spinner in limited-overs cricket and this attitude helps him to stay relaxed.

“My mindset is never that everything depends on me and I have to win matches for my team. When you start thinking about all that, your game gets affected. I like to keep it simple and I just want to give my 100 per cent effort in every match. The results are not in my control, but I can always control the effort and process. I have never taken extra pressure,” Rashid, who will turn out for Gujarat Titans this season, said during a virtual interaction on Tuesday.

“The IPL is a big stage so you have to be mentally strong. I will try to share my experiences with the other players in the team.”

Rashid, who has played for Sunrisers Hyderabad, avoided answering which IPL team was his favourite but admitted that playing under Mahendra Singh Dhoni was something he dreamt of. “I am currently playing for Gujarat Titans so this is my dream team. I will strive to do my best, it is a huge honour for me to play for Gujarat Titans and playing under Hardik Pandya will be a different experience.

“Every player has a dream of playing of under MS Dhoni, but right now I am playing for Gujarat Titans.”

The 15th edition of the IPL will be played in Mumbai and Pune, where the conditions would suit spinners, but Rashid is focusing only on his preparation.

“Actually, I have played a lot in Dubai. As spinners, Mumbai will offer you turn and bounce and you need that. I never think about conditions a lot, the important thing is your preparation and I always focus on that,” the Afghanistan spinner said.

He said that playing for a new team is not an issue.

“We (captain Hardik Pandya and he) are good friends. It will be interesting. I will start practising with him to read his mind. I am so excited.”