Chikte, who had travelled to Kuantan for the Asian Champions Trophy last year as a reserve goalkeeper, had to step up for an injured PR Sreejesh. He played a crucial role in India's 2-1 win over the hosts Malaysia.
India subsequently won the final 3-2 against defending champions Pakistan and Chikte stood up to the pressure of facing the arch-rivals.
"It is this exposure over the past year that has helped me a lot. I look forward to good show against the world's best teams," said Chikte.
Chikte feels he is a far better goalkeeper today than a year back.
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"After my first tournament for India I knew there was a lot I needed to work on starting from improving my confidence level. I had never been in any junior India camp before. I got to play the senior level directly and I knew I was lacking in basics," said Chikte after a gruelling net session at the on- going national camp in Sports Authority of India, Bengaluru.
While all the pool stage matches will to be high voltage encounters, there will be tremendous pressure when India take on Pakistan in their third pool match on June 18.
"We will look at this as any other match, vying for the three points to advance in the tournament. I have played twice against Pakistan (2016 Sultan Azlan Shah Cup and Asian Champions Trophy) and we ended up winning both the matches, so I have a lot of confidence from these matches. I believe it will be a learning experience for me," he said.
"I have learnt a lot under them. I used to watch Sreejesh when the national team used to train at Balewadi Stadium, Pune. His reflexes were excellent. I was inspired by him and he has helped me a lot since my first camp.
"Working under Sreejesh and Bharat has been a big advantage for me. My focus at every session now is on stopping penalty corners," Chikte said.