Kaif has been a revelation in England

?I always thrive on pressure, it makes me focus better," said Md Kaif whose beanpole-like structure hides a wiry strength, writes Kadambari Murali.

There's a new man in town and he goes by a familiar name. He pulls with panache, he drives with consummate ease and most importantly, he's playing like he simply doesn't know the meaning of the word pressure.

Mohammad Kaif doesn't look very reassuring when he walks in to bat. He's seems much too thin to be able to efficiently whack the ball around. He stands somewhat funnily when he's on strike, in a rather knock-kneed fashion and bending in a manner that gives the impression that he's almost crouching. And he invariably swishes a couple of times in a manner guaranteed to give you the jitters.

But his beanpole-like structure hides a wiry strength. He runs between the wickets faster than anyone else can and can give the ball as good a bashing as the best can on his day. It's sometimes not pretty but it's very effective. And the best part about him is that his day seems to be coming more often. Kaif has been a revelation on this tour. At a time when the team's batting has been largely tentative, he's walked out with confidence and played with commanding assurance.

"It's not just here, when I made a comeback in Pakistan, after a three-month injury lay off, I got a couple of important innings there, 45 in the first game and 70-odd in the fourth. I knew I could do it. You don't always but it's important to know you can."

But he's looked a different player on this tour, with scores of 50, 50, 2 (he was run out) and 49 not out. He's dominated the bowling from the word go, he's not the player who would take his time to settle before accelerating.

"Yes, I decided it's time to think positive, play positive. It's a mental adjustment I'm trying to make in my game. It paid off, so this is the way I'll continue playing."

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