Who said what - top 3 expert reactions to Arshdeep Singh's five-fer vs South Africa in 1st ODI ft. JP Duminy
Arshdeep Singh had a memorable comeback in the ODI format for India as he picked up sensational figures of 5/37 against South Africa in the first game of the three-match series in Johannesburg on Sunday, December 17.
The left-arm seamer, who had no ODI wickets before the game, picked up a fifer and that spoke volumes about just how improved his performance was after being under the pump for a while in white-ball cricket.
South Africa were bundled out for just 116, thanks to the duo of Arshdeep Singh and Avesh Khan. India ended up winning the game comfortably with eight wickets in hand, showing just how strong their bench is in fast bowling.
On that note, let's take a look at three of the best reactions from experts in the cricketing fraternity:
#3 Dinesh Karthik
Dinesh Karthik was a part of the Indian team that went to the semifinals of the T20 World Cup 2022 and had seen Arshdeep Singh's rise as well as the little decline that made many question his consistency.
The veteran Indian wicketkeeper was delighted to see Arshdeep prove his mettle and here's what he told Cricbuzz:
"A very satisfying spell for him and one that is very important in his life right now. His stocks were dipping a little bit, but again, he has shown the Indian selectors and all of India that you back me because I have skills, and I really do have it, and I will keep producing it.
"With the new ball, what was very good about him was he can swing the ball both ways. He brings the ball back into the right-handers naturally, and then develop the one that goes away."
Karthik feels the fact that Arshdeep Singh kept things simple and stuck to the basics helped him well.
#2 Sanjay Manjrekar
Former Indian cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar was thrilled to see just the depth that the Indian bowling had from their performance against the Proteas. With all the main bowlers rested for the Test series, Manjrekar hailed both Arshdeep and Avesh Khan for making the most of their opportunity.
Here's what he had to say in a video on ESPNCricinfo:
"Very happy to see Avesh Khan and Arsdheep Singh, who had lost their way a little bit at the international level, have found their basic bowling style and how they would pick wickets at the IPL and domestic level before they faced the harsh reality of international cricket.
"I hope they continue to do what they did in this match. Arsdheep, just pitching the ball up, getting it to swing, and maybe at the most, we saw a short of length ball."
Manjrekar is hopeful that this is just the performance that helps these pacers bring more consistency in their performances and get their careers back on track.
#1 JP Duminy
JP Duminy shed light on just how well Arshdeep Singh read the conditions early on, underlining that he didn't need to do much. Often fast bowlers get carried away by seeing conditions in their favor and Duminy feels Arshdeep got rewarded for his consistency and patience.
Here's what he told ESPNCricinfo:
"The thing that stands out for me is consistency. If you assess conditions and understand where the biggest threat is, you have to land the ball there consistently. Think of Arshdeep [Singh] and his ability to swing the ball up front as well as nibble it.
"He was asking those questions consistently, so you were always under pressure and when you don't have those answers, today happens."
Duminy felt South African batters didn't show enough fight to weather the storm when both Arshdeep Singh and Avesh Khan were in their groove.