“I am extremely excited to play against Titans. We know each other’s strengths and weaknesses. I have never been a player who worries about the whole idea of pressure as it will affect my performance on the mat,” Rahul told DT Next through e-mail. After five fruitless seasons with his former club, the flamboyant raider is hopeful of finishing the job for the Tamil Nadu-based outfit.

“I have never been with a title-winning team, but this is by far the best side I have been part of. We have renowned players in our squad, and I think we stand a fair chance to come up trumps in the league,” asserted the India international. Meanwhile, skipper Ajay Thakur is positive about forging a peach of a partnership with Rahul, which will enable them to pick up plenty of points.

“I completely agree that we form a lethal combination. But, at the same time there is pressure as it is built up everywhere and we have to ensure that we live up to everyone’s expectations – from our coach to the viewers. We have a lot of points individually, so as a pair, we believe we can help Thalaivas win this season,” explained Ajay.

Since the inception of the franchise in 2017, Thalaivas has been woeful at home, with a win percentage of barely 10. But, the Himachal Pradesh lad said the side is sweating it out to bring some smiles on the faces of the local faithful. “Fans can definitely expect us to win more matches on our home patch. We have put in a lot of effort and we are hoping for a good number of victories.”