Umran Malik, a pace bowling wonder, could be called up to the Indian team as early as June for seven T20 Internationals against South Africa and Ireland, respectively.
India will play South Africa in a five-match T20 International series at home (9, 12, 14, 17, 20 June) and two matches in Ireland’s Malahide (26, 28 June) while the big guns prepare for the series-deciding fifth Test against England, which begins in early July.
Umran was a net bowler at India’s most recent World T20 campaign, which took place in the United Arab Emirates.
The BCCI wants to have a larger pool of fast bowlers for the 2019 World T20 in Australia, and Umran, with his blistering pace, has a good chance of joining the squad provided all goes well and he stays fit over the next two months.
Jasprit Bumrah, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Avesh Khan, Harshal Patel, Mohammed Siraj, Deepak Chahar (if fit), Mohammed Shami, and Umesh Yadav are among the premier bowlers whose workload management will be crucial.
Umran, left-armers T Natarajan, and Arshdeep Singh, all of whom have impressed in the IPL, are three periphery bowlers who might get a chance in some of the 20+ T20I matches in the run-up to the World Cup.
Dale Steyn, the bowling coach of the Sunrisers Hyderabad and a fast bowling great, has described the Jammu guy as a “genius.”
“My responsibility with Umran is to make sure he runs quickly and forces players to play in a different way. My role is to get him to think about what the batters are going to do ahead of time.
“It’s thrilling for us to sit back and watch him demonstrate his brilliance. “I don’t want to transform him into what I was; all I want is for his brilliance to shine through,” Steyn remarked on Star Sports Cricket Live.
Chetan Sharma, India’s chairman of selectors, and his committee are expected to keep a close check on Umran, who is now India’s fastest bowler by a long shot, often clocking 152 plus.
This season, he has nine wickets in six games for SRH, and the way he terrified a veteran international batsman like KKR’s Shreyas Iyer was thrilling to watch.
Malik will become more lethal once he is able to stop spraying deliveries on leg-stump and wide off it, according to Sunil Gavaskar, an IPL commentator.
“A lot of men who bowl that fast spray the ball around, but Umran only throws a few wide deliveries.” If he can manage the wides down the leg side, he’ll be a fantastic bowler because he’ll be attacking the stumps all the time, and hitting straight with his pace is difficult.
Former opener WV Raman, one of Indian cricket’s most renowned voices, believes the moment is right for Umran to be recruited into the team right away.
“He has a unique ability. He’s got speed, and he’s learning the ropes of fast bowling. If a young bowler possesses pace, don’t wait three seasons to give him a chance.
“You should really look at him if he is young and as quick as Umran is,” Raman, a former NCA batting coach who has also worked with KKR and the Indian women’s team, told PTI.
Devang Gandhi, a former selector, believes that raw pace might be counterproductive because international batters can score quickly.
“Considering that the Australian pitches for the ICC tournament will be excellent for batting, I feel India will rely on experience going into the World Cup.”
“However, in the lead-up to the World T20, you may look at other options, and there is no harm in trying Umran and seeing what he can bring to the table,” Gandhi, a member of the previous selection committee, said. As per an article by Firstpost.
