Australian wicket-keeper Tim Paine who will be taking the field today against the Men in Blue in the first of the three-match T20I series in Ranchi has had a topsy-turvy career. Having made his international debut around eight years ago, it was hard for Paine to be overlooked for a majority of the time. He had even considered calling it quits at a particular stage, but it was the contract with the Tasmanian side and recall back to the Australian T20I squad which helped him make a turnaround.

“It’s a turnaround. I was looking to probably retire and accept a job with Kookaburra company. Then I had the opportunity to stay with Tasmania for another couple of years. Then I got picked to play in the T20Is in Sri Lanka and another opportunity here. It’s turned around pretty quickly and I am grateful for that, Paine said at the pre-match press conference ahead of the opening T20I. The wicket-keeper batsman stated that he has no regrets despite not being picked earlier.

“It would not be easy to do that. I have been lucky to have played some Tests for Australia. For me, to sit back and be bitter about what happened would be pretty silly, even before getting back into the T20Is,” said Paine. He may not have had a great international career but he is happy with he has achieved.

“I am really proud of what I have achieved in cricket. I don’t look at what might have been. I am happy with what’s happened so far and hopeful that it will continue for another few years.”

Paine conceded the fact that given his age of 32 he is not looking too far ahead and is concentrating on the job at hand.

“First and foremost, it’s to do well tomorrow night. I know it’s a bit of a cliche but someone my age and my position, it would be foolish to look too far ahead,” said Paine.

“I just have to keep reminding myself to do well in a new series, and then when I head home to Australia I hope to start the Shield season and the JLT Cup really well. Not looking too far ahead,” he further added.

Paine said that Indian skipper Virat Kohli would be the most critical player in the rival camp when the two teams go head to head later in the day.

“Obviously, he is a really good player. Not many teams had much success against him. He will be a huge wicket tomorrow night and in the whole series,” Paine said. “We had a brief chat about him in the team meeting last night. I don’t want to get into the details. We certainly have got a couple of plans, we will see how it goes,” Paine said.

The visitors need to play out of their skin to harbour any hopes of winning the series given India’s impressive run across formats. After reaching the top of the ladder in the Latest ICC Rankings in both Tests and ODI’s, India’s main aim will be to reach the pinnacle even in the shortest format of the game.