Daryl Mitchell believes the Indian Premier League will be a great learning school for him. In his maiden season at the world’s most glamorous T20 league, the 30-year-old all-rounder from New Zealand will play for Rajasthan Royals.

“It feels good to be a part of a massive tournament such as the IPL,” Mitchell said. “Boasting some of the best players in the world, I think it’s a great learning school and I’m happy to have that opportunity for myself to learn from the best here.”

Mitchell could draw from the experience of playing for New Zealand against in the Mumbai Test late last year. The venue, the Wankhede Stadium, is hosting the IPL matches, too.

“To play a Test match in Mumbai was quite unique, and it was indeed a special game with Ajaz (Patel) doing what he did. I feel the pitches will definitely get slower as the league stage goes on. For us as a team, it’s about adapting and being in the right frame of mind on a particular surface,” he said.

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While Mitchell is looking forward to his first season in the IPL, his trans-Tasman neighbour Nathan Coulter-Nile has been a part of the event since 2013, but will be donning the Royals colours for the first time. “It’s good to be picked by the Royals,” the Australian seamer said. “They’ve always carried a solid reputation on the field and have been one of the tougher teams to beat in the competition, no matter what the situation of the game.”

He is delighted that Lasith Malinga, a former team-mate at Mumbai Indians, is the fast-bowling coach at Royals. “He’s unbelievable, it was amazing seeing him go about his work during my time with Mumbai and now at the Royals,” the 34-year-old said. “To train and prepare under him now is a good opportunity to get into his head and see how he thinks about bowling.”