Bangalore: Having arrived from Hong Kong after playing a Sixes tournament just 24 hours before the start of a four-day match is certainly not ideal for any batsman, but 20-year-old Manish Pandey has proved that he is completely different material.

His unbeaten knock of 194 on day one of the Ranji Trophy tie between Karnataka and Uttar Pradesh is the best knock that the young lad has played in his short first class career and is undoubtedly not the last.

After scoring his maiden first class century, Pandey said from Meerut, "It's a great feeling. Till now everyone thought that I could just play the T20 format, but with this knock, I have proved that I am capable of performing in all forms of the game."

The right-handed batsman was also lucky to have the company of the technically astute Rahul Dravid for most of his knock. "When I came to the centre, Dravid told me not to try anything silly and to just play my natural game," said Pandey.

"He constantly kept encouraging me through the day, and if you have a player like him at the other end things become easier for any player," he added.

Though he was playing in the longer format, Pandey continued to play his natural game. His knock of 194 came at a strike rate of 81.51. "Though there was no pressure of having just 120 balls in an innings, I didn't hesitate to hit the bad balls out to the boundary," he said.

Though he just arrived after playing the Hong Kong Super Sixes, Pandey admitted that he did not have any difficulty in adapting to a new format within 24 hours.

Pandey pointed out, "See, cricket is the same everywhere. I agree that in a Sixes tournament you need to hit the ball over the fielder, but even for that you need to have the right technique and if the technique is right you can succeed in any form of the game."

After this knock, Pandey admitted that expectations will be high from him for the rest of the season, but maintained that it would not put any more pressure on him. "I know that Dravid will not be available after the first two games, so I will try to continue to get runs for Karnataka, but we also have a number of good middle order batsmen, who too will have to play a key role in the team's success," said Pandey.

Pandey, who after scoring his maiden first class century is just six runs away from the 200 run mark, is hoping that on Wednesday morning he can get these runs quickly and then help Karnataka further consolidate its position in the match. Pandey was part of the team last year, when they failed to gain the first innings lead against the same UP team despite scoring 511 runs in Bangalore, and doesn't want history to be repeated once again in Meerut.

But for now, Pandey is happy that finally he has been able to come out from the shackles of being a T20 star to a batsman who can deliver whenever his team needs him.