He has impressed with his composure under pressure. At the age of just 18, he’s being touted as a key member of the Indian white-ball side. While he is enjoying the international stint, Washington Sundar knows he needs to evolve as a cricketer and there’s no substitute for hard work. Having made a mark in IPL-10 playing for the Rising Pune Supergiant (RPS), he’s now looking forward to another productive season in IPL. Excerpts from a conversation with ET.Tell us about the last ball of the Nidahas Trophy. You were at the nonstriker’s end when Dinesh Karthik hit the six. What did you guys talk about?We did not talk. But while walking out, I had a feeling we could still win the game. Karthik was batting like a man possessed. He had already hit two sixes and two boundaries in the previous seven balls. And with Soumya Sarkar bowling at 130kmph, I was confident Karthik could do it. The moment the ball had come off his bat, I had a sense it was a boundary. And I was delighted because it meant it would be a tie and we were in the game if it were a super over. In the next fraction of a second I could see the ball go over the boundary. It was a heady feeling to have won the match and the tournament.Coming to your own performance, you’ve been bowling in the powerplays consistently for quite some time now. Do you feel the pressure or have you come to terms with it? There is pressure at every stage to be honest. If you are playing for your country in front of packed stadiums and with millions watching on TV, there’s bound to be pressure. But, it is also an opportunity. I feel blessed to have this opportunity so early in my life. To be able to do something for my country and give my best shot every time I wear the India jersey. I actually enjoy bowling in the powerplays. I know the batsmen will come hard and will want 15 runs off my over. But that’s the challenge for a cricketer. It will be the same in the IPL and I am looking forward to it.What do you do differently in the powerplays and how do you plan to do this job consistently? I want to bowl at all stages of the innings. Want to be able to do the job whenever my captain asks me to. Having said that, during the powerplays you don’t need to experiment too much with the batsman trying to hit every ball. It is somewhat similar to bowling at the death. In the middle overs you can experiment a little more and you can try variations to get more wickets for the team. There are subtle differences, which I want to get better at going forward.Very few people knew about Washington Sundar when Rising Pune Supergiant (RPS) picked you as Ravi Aswin’s replacement in IPL-10. Tell us about the experience. RPS will forever be a special experience for me. It was my first real break and one which had given me the platform and the chance to make a name for myself. In that sense those two months were really important. I still feel we should’ve won the tournament but to be able to make the final was a big achievement. Many of us were better cricketers by the end of the season.Coming back to the Indian team, tell us about the dressing room atmosphere, captain Rohit Sharma and coaches Ravi Shastri and Bharat Arun?I am lucky to get into an environment like the one we have in the dressing room. To get a look in a team that has really dominated the whiteball format for a year now and to get such supportive seniors and coaches is real luck. I have no inhibitions or apprehensions about expressing myself. I know unless I do something really stupid, which I think I will not, the captain and the coaches are all there for me.Batsmen will now try to work you out. How do you look at the future? I’ve never set goals. Never ever. All I want to do is stay in the moment and work hard. I know I’ve to evolve more as a cricketer and I also know that if I stay true and work hard, I can do well in the future. It is best if I just stay in the moment and keep working hard. Rest of the things will automatically fall in place.