Umesh Yadav: The anomaly among Indian fast bowlers
Back in the 2011-12 season, the Indian side embarked on a tour Down Under, where they clashed swords with Australia, hoping to vanquish the demons of their previous high-profile Test tour; an English adventure where they were astoundingly drubbed 4-0.
Unfortunately, their efforts to right the wrongs went in vain as India collapsed to another 4-0 whitewash against the Aussies. The tourists unravelled when pitted opposite Ben Hilfenhaus, James Pattinson and Peter Siddle whereas they faced the wrath of David Warner and Michael Clarke towards the end of the series.
Thus, there seemed to be many a grey cloud surrounding Indian Test cricket at that juncture, a prospect made drearier considering they’d collectively failed, again.
However, among all the doom, there was a hint of optimism. Umesh Yadav, a fast bowler, who had earned rave reviews for his ability to effortlessly clock speeds in excess of 140 kmph, had announced his arrival on the international stage with a string of wickets.
Consequently, the Indian faithful waited with bated breath hoping for the lad from Vidarbha to conclude their eternal hunt for a genuinely quick bowler. After all, the nation had seen the likes of Munaf Patel, RP Singh and more famously, S Sreesanth fall off a cliff, for cricketing and non-cricketing reasons.
More worryingly though, a recurring pattern had been laid bare; one where the pacers came into the side boasting immense speed but soon compromised for a more controlled version. And, while Umesh hasn’t yet scaled the peaks many believed he was primed to, he still has managed to give a decent account of himself, thereby ensuring that he hasn’t slipped into oblivion.
However, over the course of his successes, a rather surprising trend has emerged wherein the fast bowler has been much more prolific on the traditionally dour Indian surfaces as opposed to those provided overseas, meaning that several have been left scratching their heads trying to decipher the discrepancy.
In 26 Tests at home, Yadav has scalped 84 wickets at an excellent average of 25.90 and an equally impressive strike rate of 48.73. To put things into perspective, his strike rate is second only to Mohammed Shami when talking about Indian fast bowlers to have taken a minimum of 10 wickets in Test history.
On his away trips though, he averages 42.20 with a strike rate of 60.87, a tally that pales in comparison to what he has conjured on Indian pitches. Moreover, he’s gone at an abnormally high economy rate of 4.19, nearly a run per over more than his numbers at home. And, the above, could explain the first part of the deviation between his displays.
Primarily an attacking weapon, Yadav boasts tons of pace and is used as a partnership-breaker, meaning that he may sometimes be prone to the odd expensive spell. However, on the road, where he is expected to be the spearhead, he just struggles, courtesy a couple of aspects.
Firstly, India are inclined to crowd the opposition batsmen more, thereby providing Umesh with more close-in fielders than he might be accustomed to. Inevitably, that leaves gaps elsewhere which are exploited by the batsmen as they capitalise on the fast bowler’s pace to maximise their scoring options.
In that respect, Yadav is quite similar to a bowler of the ilk of Imran Tahir, who also likes his field to be spread out a touch at the outset before feeling confident enough to try out his variations.
Secondly, consistency in line and length isn’t Umesh’s greatest strength, although he has evolved considerably since his international bow. Yet, when the aforementioned deficiency comes to the fore, it allows the pressure to be released, thereby enabling the batsmen to wait for the loose ball, rather than fervently searching for it.
A closer introspection of the merits of Yadav’s bowling style provides one with more answers to the conundrum encompassing his contrasting fortunes home and away.
The seamer’s natural length is somewhere between the good length and the full length. On Indian wickets, that length allows him to target the batsmen’s pads and stumps more, meaning that he has greater chances of getting them bowled or dismissed LBW.
However, on his travels, deliveries pitched in a similar area bounce just a tad higher. Consequently, those balls don’t threaten the stumps as much, forcing Umesh to bowl slightly fuller. The change leads to the pacer treading a fine line where he has to persist with a length that isn’t too full to be driven while it isn’t also short, in the process, eliminating wicket-taking options.
And, invariably, he has erred on the fuller side, thereby throwing light on his higher economy rate away from home as well.
Additionally, a lot of Yadav’s wickets on Indian tracks come about due to the phenomenon known to the world as reverse swing. The abrasiveness of surfaces provides teams with the requisite opportunity to scuff up one side of the ball and transform it to start swinging towards the heavier or shinier side, completely opposite to what happens when the conventional swing is in full flow.
The above also explains his relatively uninspiring record in the SENA (South Africa, England, New Zealand and Australia) countries. In 9 Tests in those regions, he has bagged 30 wickets while giving away 1443 runs, thereby averaging 160 runs conceded per game.
Moreover, in the past, several fast bowlers have opined that they’ve felt more comfortable handling reverse swing than the movement with the new ball. And, on the evidence that Yadav has served up so far, one feels that he falls into the mentioned category.
Thus, one reckons that India, akin to the horses for courses policy it has followed lately, would be better served utilising Umesh’s talents at home, considering his suitability to the Indian surfaces.
As for the contests overseas, maybe an Ishant Sharma, who can provide more control could be the shrewder option.
Yet, one would be extremely naïve to write off Yadav from adding another string to his bowling bow and becoming an adept option across the globe, irrespective of the conditions.
After all, nearly eight years ago, when the speedster scooped up a five-wicket haul at the WACA, that was what he was destined to achieve, wasn’t he?
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