'Never let pressure get to you': Rishabh Pant's golden words inspire LSG pacer Prince Yadav

NEW DELHI: Every bowler - spinner or pacer - remembers his first wicket. For Delhi quick Prince Yadav, the answer comes instantly: Travis Head. The Lucknow Super Giants pacer marked his maiden IPL scalp with a searing yorker that shattered the Sunrisers Hyderabad opener’s stumps. Arms raised to the sky, Yadav soaked in a night he will never forget - with the butterflies lasting till morning.He sprinted towards his captain Rishabh Pant, exchanged high-fives, and hugged him, while the team mentor applauded from the dugout.Go Beyond The Boundary with our YouTube channel. SUBSCRIBE NOW!The 23-year-old pacer from Delhi featured in six matches in IPL 2025 and took three wickets – Travis Head (SRH), Nehal Wadhera (Punjab Kings), and Will Jacks (Mumbai Indians). Interestingly, all three dismissals came via bowled.Prince, who first came into the spotlight during last year's Delhi Premier League, earned his IPL contract on the back of his strong performances. He credits Rishabh Pant for playing a key role in his journey."Rishabh Pant always guided me. He often told me that in pressure situations, you should never let the pressure get to you and must always find a way out. The quicker you learn to handle pressure, the faster you will grow," Prince told TimesofIndia.com."Whenever I felt doubt or pressure at any point, I would talk to him and he would immediately clear it for me. He knows how to bounce back. Even if he wasn't performing at times, he never let it affect the team or himself. He kept the same bonding with everyone, the same energy, and always stayed positive," he said.Prince had a strong debut season in the Delhi Premier League, where he made the new ball talk and showcased his yorkers, finishing with 13 wickets in 10 innings in 2024. He followed it up with another fine run, emerging as Delhi's leading wicket-taker in the 2024-25 Vijay Hazare Trophy with 11 wickets in six matches at an average of 22.On the back of these performances, Lucknow Super Giants secured his services at his base price of Rs 30 lakh in the 2025 IPL auction."Every day we wake up to learn something new. Recently, I got to learn a lot from Rishabh bhai. My first interaction with him was during the first match of Purani Dilli 6, where he was the captain. After the match, I spent almost the whole night sitting with him. I learnt many things from that experience. He was quite impressed with me, and later I got more opportunities," Prince recalled."Two or three franchises had called me for trials, but LSG picked me. My trials went well almost everywhere, but the support I got from LSG was immense. I had been a net bowler with them earlier, and that helped me a lot."When I started taking wickets, I got a contract worth 30 lakh, which was a big step. Vijay Dahiya sir, who was part of the LSG support staff as assistant coach, also guided me a lot," he said."Zaheer sir has always backed me and taught me valuable lessons. Even as a net bowler, I bowled to almost all the players, and this year, as part of the main squad, I bowled to everyone in matches too. I even managed to dismiss some big names," the fast bowler added.Prince also draws inspiration from South African pace legend Dale Steyn."When I was very young, my favourite bowler was Brett Lee, but later Dale Steyn became my idol. I loved his aggression. I haven't met him yet, but I would love to meet him someday and take bowling tips from him," Prince said.