Ishant Sharma picks 3 Indian fast bowlers to watch out for, includes uncapped Bengal pacer
Veteran Indian pacer Ishant Sharma has picked Umran Malik, Arshdeep Singh and uncapped Bengal cricketer Mukesh Kumar as the three Indian fast bowlers to watch out for. While sharing his views on Malik and Kumar, he stated that with proper guidance, both can be assets to Indian cricket in the years to come.
While Malik and Arshdeep have already played for India, Kumar is still awaiting his opportunity, which might come during the tour of West Indies. The 29-year-old has been picked in both the Test and ODI squads.
In an interaction on Ranveer Allahbadia’s YouTube show, Ishant was asked to name three Indian pace bowlers to look out for from the current crop. He replied:
“Umran Malik. If you work alright with him, I think he has the potential to do well for the country for a long time. Then, there is Arshdeep Singh and Mukesh Kumar. Mukesh is so innocent, if someone tells him, ‘bowl this delivery’, then he will do that. He needs the right guidance on the field, so that he gains experience and knows which ball to bowl under pressure situations.
“He went for runs in this IPL because he bowled the tough overs. I feel if he is guided properly, he can turn out to be a very good fast bowler,” Ishant added about Kumar.
Ishant Sharma said "When Virat Kohli became the captain, he brought fitness culture into the Indian team, it became compulsory to everyone, now if you see Shami & other fast bowlers, you can see the difference, that was huge under Virat Kohli". [BeerBiceps YT] https://t.co/QLSgEwKPqA
Having made his first-class debut in November 2015, Kumar has featured in 39 matches, in which he has claimed 149 wickets at an average of 21.55, with six five-wicket hauls.
“He has brilliant self-belief like a young Virat Kohli” - Ishant on Shubman Gill
Shifting focus to the future of Indian batting, Ishant hailed prolific opener Shubman Gill. Comparing him to Virat Kohli, the fast bowler said that Gill seems to have the same amount of self-belief that a young Kohli had. The 34-year-old said:
“He [Gill] has brilliant self-belief like a young Virat Kohli. When Cheeku [Kohli] was young, he had amazing self-belief and that is why he performed so consistently. Other than self-belief, you don’t need anything. If you take that feeling to the ground, everything else seems small. If you have self-belief, you don’t even need motivation. You know you can win matches for the team and that automatically makes other things easier.”
Gill is going through a purple patch with the bat. The 23-year-old has featured in 16 Tests, 24 ODIs and six T20Is. He has already notched up seven international hundreds - four in one-dayers, two in Tests and one in the T20I format.