How good have India's fast bowlers been in Tests in 2019? Here are the numbers
Traditionally, India have depended on spin to win them matches in Test cricket. In fact, it became a culture of sorts in the country after the famous spin quartet weaved their magic in the 60s and 70s. The legacy was carried forward briefly by Maninder Singh and Narendra Hirwani among others before the arrival of Anil Kumble took it on an altogether different level. Kumble’s success further inspired the likes of Harbhajan Singh, who wrote his name into history by becoming the first Indian to take a Test hat-trick.
Even till a couple of seasons back, India were heavily reliant on Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja to turn games around, especially at home. However, 2019 has given a whole new dimension to Indian cricket, with pace taking ascendancy both abroad and at home, reaching a zenith in the day-night Kolkata Test where fast bowlers picked up all the wickets to fall. Never has Indian cricket been blessed with such lightning talent. Here’s a look at the four men who have engineered the turnaround in Indian cricket.
Ishant Sharma
The lanky Ishant Sharma has been around the Test arena for a decade. However, following the retirement of Zaheer Khan, he struggled to take charge as the leader of the attack in the absence of support from the other end. There was a lengthy phase in his career when he was constantly beating the batsmen with good balls but the wickets column remained almost barren. Questions were even being asked about whether India should start looking Sharma as he had not produced the desired results in spite of being given ample opportunties. Even the seven-for he claimed at Lord's in 2014 was seen as a one-off as India went on to tamely lose the series, and Sharma too could not reproduce a similar effort.
Also see – BBL schedule
Things began to change with the arrival of Jasprit Bumrah, the unorthodox pacer, who made his Test debut for India in early 2018. In the company of a wicket-taking bowler, Sharma slowly began to find his groove. And this year, his performance levels have only improved immensely. In six Tests this year, Sharma has picked up 25 wickets at an average of 15.56 with two five-wicket hauls.
While he had pretty much a limited role against South Africa, with the other bowlers doing the damage, Sharma came into his own against Bangladesh and West Indies with 12 and 11 wickets respectively in two Tests each. His eight wickets in the North Sound Test, where he unsettled Windies batsmen with his pace, were key to India’s triumph, and he also picked up a five-for in the pink-ball Test, where he ran through the tail in the second innings, and the top order in the first. Sharma’s new-found ability to bring the ball back in and the effective leg-cutters, very much on display at Eden Gardens against Bangladesh, have given much-needed versatility to his bowling.