New Delhi: A coach who believed in him more than himself, a captain who supported when the chips were down and conditions that felt more like home than away -- Indian pacer Akash deep says his maiden but impactful tour of England was rather smooth.

A 10-wicket match-haul in one game and a very important half-century in another, both in winning causes, summed up Akash Deep’s performance that has made him an overnight star but he can’t forget what head coach Gautam Gambhir told him after his 66 at the Oval. “Tumko khud pata nahi tum kya kar sakte ho (You aren’t aware of your capabilities). ‘See, I was tell-ing you, you can do it. You have to play with this dedication always’,” the 29-year-old recollected in an interview to PTI.

“Gautam bhai is a very passionate coach. He always motivates us. He believes in me more than I be-lieve in myself, both in my batting and bowling,” he gushed after having earned the vote of confi-dence from his coach. Having made his Test debut under Rohit Sharma and now playing under Shubman Gill, the adjust-ment has been easy for the Bengal speedster, who terms the new skipper as someone who is calm yet brimming with on-field ideas. “He is a very good captain. It’s not like he is a new captain. He has already been an IPL captain for a couple of years, which is a big platform. That experience does count,” he said. “With Shubman as captain, I didn’t feel like I was playing for the first time. He’s very supportive. When a captain supports you and understands things well, especially when you are down, it makes a big difference.

“I have played Duleep Trophy under his captaincy last year so it wasn’t the first time.