Published on December 4, 2011
It has been exhilarating to watch Umesh Yadav and Varun Aaron in action in India’s recent Test and one-day matches. Both routinely bowl at the 140-145 kmph (around the 90mph) mark and that has made many observers excited. Very few Indian pace bowlers have shown the ability to bowl at sustained pace to make the opposition batsmen hop around. India’s dead pitches and unhelpful weather are among the usual factors cited to explain why most “Indian fast bowlers” end up as medium pacers after a while. Most of them break on to the scene bowling pretty quick but within a couple of years one finds their pace gone and major injuries blighting their once-promising careers. Will Yadav and Aaron also go the same way? One hopes not.
Why is it that the Pakistanis have been able to produce a battery of great fast bowlers while India has struggled in the same department? There have been no satisfactory answers. Pakistan has had a line-up of legendary names like Sarfraz Nawaz, Wasim Akram, Waqar Younis, Shoaib Akhtar and, of course Imran Khan, beside many others who were both genuinely quick as well as wily customers with the cricket ball. Pakistan’s first-class cricket structure is far weaker than that of India’s and the pitches in both countries are both totally unsuited to pace bowling. And yet, the Pakistan pace attack has been much better than India’s at almost any point in the two countries’ histories.
One reason could be the bigger build of the Pakistanis – look at the physique of their pacemen and compare them with their counterparts from India and you will inevitably see the difference. The Pakistani fast bowlers have also looked the part with their aggression and body language while the Indian pacemen often gave the impression of being soft fellows who would apologise profusely to the batsmen after bowling a bouncer at them!
Indian cricket history is littered with the names of plenty of medium pacers and fast-medium bowlers but very few genuine quick bowlers. Indeed, by the early 1970s the situation was so dire that even some of our specialist batsmen were often employed as new-ball bowlers to get the shine off the ball so that India’s fabled spinners could get into the thick of action as quickly as possible! It was left to the great Kapil Dev to break this depressing pattern. With Dev’s arrival, India finally had someone who could bowl at a brisk pace – but it was Dev’s wonderful outswingers, rather than raw pace, that did the real damage to the opposition. But he could also bowl pretty quick on responsive surfaces – as he proved when he ran through the Aussies in the Melbourne Test of 1981. India’s national team could finally boast it also had a strike bowler. Dev's exploits would become the stuff of legend over the two decades he represented India.
In the 1980s, there were some more trundlers who were Dev’s comrades in the new-ball attack – these included Madan Lal, Roger Binny and Chetan Sharma, besides others whose names have been forgotten by most fans (anyone out there remember Salil Ankola, Vivek Razdan, Sanjeev Sharma etc?). The best of these were hard-working cricketers of limited means who could pick up a few wickets when the conditions suited them. Otherwise, they were pretty ineffective. Even the setting-up of the MRF Pace Foundation at Chennai did not help matters – I have yet to hear of a genuine prospect coming from there even after 25 years or so of the foundation being in existence.
In the 1990s emerged Javagal Srinath, who was a sharp fast-medium bowler who could also bowl the genuine quick spell. Srinath, affectionately nicknamed “the fastest vegetarian bowler in the world”, did win India a few Tests, especially overseas, with his fast bowling. He did not stay around too long, sadly, though he did have a decent run as the Indian spearhead. His statemate Venkatesh Prasad, whose forte was line-and-length seam bowling, was his main partner, though Prasad was far more effective in ODIs than Tests.Then, during the last decade, appeared a crop of pace bowlers who promised much for India. This was during Saurav Ganguly’s time at the helm. The most promising of the lot was Zaheer Khan, a left-arm fast-medium bowler who would go on to become the best paceman India has had in years. Khan who has become an expert user of both the old and the new balls also became one of the few Indian bowlers who managed to master the mysterious art of reverse swing, hitherto a preserve of the Pakistanis. He is a pretty decent sledger too! But Khan’s perennial problem is that of fitness – he very rarely manages to complete a full series without getting injured. Khan’s body has often rebelled against the demands made on it – the fact that he is not a natural athlete has not helped matters.
Another paceman with good potential was the gangly Ashish Nehra from Delhi – Nehra bowled what was probably the quickest spell by an Indian, in the match against England during the 2003 World Cup when he took 6/23. It was a riveting spell, one that has remained in my mind even after so many hours of watching cricket. But he too has been extremely injury-prone and has missed more matched than he has played for India.There have been a few others in the last decade - some quick, the rest trying to pretend they were fast while they were not. A teenaged Irfan Pathan, for instance, made a big impact with his clever inswing bowling in 2003-04 on his first appearances in Australia and Pakistan. Sadly, his bowling form fell off drastically within a couple of years while his batting improved greatly. The ever-popular Pathan is now trying to make a comeback to the Indian one-day team, on the back of some good performances with the ball in domestic cricket.
Munaf Patel was also an interesting bowler when he started his international career – with an ideal body for a pace bowler, he promised much. He had genuine pace and excellent control over the ball. But inconsistent form and injury issues took their toll. Patel is still around, always on the fringe of things, but it is unlikely that he would ever be a regular for India.
Shanthakumaran Sreesanth excited many Malayalis when he burst on the scene. With his ability to bowl with a wonderful “seam position” (a phrase not much in vogue till then) and maverick tendencies, the “Kerala Express” promised much. He excelled in a couple of Tests (notably in South Africa), though his economy rate and general indiscipline left much to be desired even from the start. Sreesanth's nadir came during the England tour during last summer when he could pick up only a few wickets on the surfaces that theoretically suited him best. The few Malayalis who can stand his difficult behaviour still hope he would be a force to reckon with at all levels of the game – conveniently forgetting that Sreesanth’s bowling is totally unsuited to the shorter versions of the game.
Ishant Sharma was seen as India’s great fast bowling hope, especially after his performances against the likes of Ricky Ponting on India’s last tour of Australia four years ago. With his tall frame Sharma was able to work up disconcerting bounce as well as pace. Then, sadly, his performances fell off, partly because of lack of confidence as well as untimely injuries. So it was a relief to note that in recent matches he has been able to get back to something like full fitness and pace. Sharma is a real asset to the Indian cause when he is on song.
Thankfully, the latest crop of Indian quicks seems to be much better than the ones that have come before – Yadav seems to be the best of the lot with his pace and his movement. He also seems to use his brain, an ability that is not exactly a hallmark of Indian fast bowlers of the past. I like his enthusiasm and zest for the game too. Aaron, on the other hand, while comparable in pace to Yadav, does not yet seem to be on the same level. And his much poorer fielding skills are a liability. Of course, the big test for both youngsters is just around the corner when India visit Australia later his month. That tour will either make or break them.
P.S. On Dec 9, it was announced that the injured Varun Aaron has been pulled out of the Indian squad for the Tests in Australia.
It has been exhilarating to watch Umesh Yadav and Varun Aaron in action in India’s recent Test and one-day matches. Both routinely bowl at the 140-145 kmph (around the 90mph) mark and that has made many observers excited. Very few Indian pace bowlers have shown the ability to bowl at sustained pace to make the opposition batsmen hop around. India’s dead pitches and unhelpful weather are among the usual factors cited to explain why most “Indian fast bowlers” end up as medium pacers after a while. Most of them break on to the scene bowling pretty quick but within a couple of years one finds their pace gone and major injuries blighting their once-promising careers. Will Yadav and Aaron also go the same way? One hopes not.
Why is it that the Pakistanis have been able to produce a battery of great fast bowlers while India has struggled in the same department? There have been no satisfactory answers. Pakistan has had a line-up of legendary names like Sarfraz Nawaz, Wasim Akram, Waqar Younis, Shoaib Akhtar and, of course Imran Khan, beside many others who were both genuinely quick as well as wily customers with the cricket ball. Pakistan’s first-class cricket structure is far weaker than that of India’s and the pitches in both countries are both totally unsuited to pace bowling. And yet, the Pakistan pace attack has been much better than India’s at almost any point in the two countries’ histories.
One reason could be the bigger build of the Pakistanis – look at the physique of their pacemen and compare them with their counterparts from India and you will inevitably see the difference. The Pakistani fast bowlers have also looked the part with their aggression and body language while the Indian pacemen often gave the impression of being soft fellows who would apologise profusely to the batsmen after bowling a bouncer at them!
Indian cricket history is littered with the names of plenty of medium pacers and fast-medium bowlers but very few genuine quick bowlers. Indeed, by the early 1970s the situation was so dire that even some of our specialist batsmen were often employed as new-ball bowlers to get the shine off the ball so that India’s fabled spinners could get into the thick of action as quickly as possible! It was left to the great Kapil Dev to break this depressing pattern. With Dev’s arrival, India finally had someone who could bowl at a brisk pace – but it was Dev’s wonderful outswingers, rather than raw pace, that did the real damage to the opposition. But he could also bowl pretty quick on responsive surfaces – as he proved when he ran through the Aussies in the Melbourne Test of 1981. India’s national team could finally boast it also had a strike bowler. Dev's exploits would become the stuff of legend over the two decades he represented India.
In the 1980s, there were some more trundlers who were Dev’s comrades in the new-ball attack – these included Madan Lal, Roger Binny and Chetan Sharma, besides others whose names have been forgotten by most fans (anyone out there remember Salil Ankola, Vivek Razdan, Sanjeev Sharma etc?). The best of these were hard-working cricketers of limited means who could pick up a few wickets when the conditions suited them. Otherwise, they were pretty ineffective. Even the setting-up of the MRF Pace Foundation at Chennai did not help matters – I have yet to hear of a genuine prospect coming from there even after 25 years or so of the foundation being in existence.
In the 1990s emerged Javagal Srinath, who was a sharp fast-medium bowler who could also bowl the genuine quick spell. Srinath, affectionately nicknamed “the fastest vegetarian bowler in the world”, did win India a few Tests, especially overseas, with his fast bowling. He did not stay around too long, sadly, though he did have a decent run as the Indian spearhead. His statemate Venkatesh Prasad, whose forte was line-and-length seam bowling, was his main partner, though Prasad was far more effective in ODIs than Tests.Then, during the last decade, appeared a crop of pace bowlers who promised much for India. This was during Saurav Ganguly’s time at the helm. The most promising of the lot was Zaheer Khan, a left-arm fast-medium bowler who would go on to become the best paceman India has had in years. Khan who has become an expert user of both the old and the new balls also became one of the few Indian bowlers who managed to master the mysterious art of reverse swing, hitherto a preserve of the Pakistanis. He is a pretty decent sledger too! But Khan’s perennial problem is that of fitness – he very rarely manages to complete a full series without getting injured. Khan’s body has often rebelled against the demands made on it – the fact that he is not a natural athlete has not helped matters.
Another paceman with good potential was the gangly Ashish Nehra from Delhi – Nehra bowled what was probably the quickest spell by an Indian, in the match against England during the 2003 World Cup when he took 6/23. It was a riveting spell, one that has remained in my mind even after so many hours of watching cricket. But he too has been extremely injury-prone and has missed more matched than he has played for India.There have been a few others in the last decade - some quick, the rest trying to pretend they were fast while they were not. A teenaged Irfan Pathan, for instance, made a big impact with his clever inswing bowling in 2003-04 on his first appearances in Australia and Pakistan. Sadly, his bowling form fell off drastically within a couple of years while his batting improved greatly. The ever-popular Pathan is now trying to make a comeback to the Indian one-day team, on the back of some good performances with the ball in domestic cricket.
Munaf Patel was also an interesting bowler when he started his international career – with an ideal body for a pace bowler, he promised much. He had genuine pace and excellent control over the ball. But inconsistent form and injury issues took their toll. Patel is still around, always on the fringe of things, but it is unlikely that he would ever be a regular for India.
Shanthakumaran Sreesanth excited many Malayalis when he burst on the scene. With his ability to bowl with a wonderful “seam position” (a phrase not much in vogue till then) and maverick tendencies, the “Kerala Express” promised much. He excelled in a couple of Tests (notably in South Africa), though his economy rate and general indiscipline left much to be desired even from the start. Sreesanth's nadir came during the England tour during last summer when he could pick up only a few wickets on the surfaces that theoretically suited him best. The few Malayalis who can stand his difficult behaviour still hope he would be a force to reckon with at all levels of the game – conveniently forgetting that Sreesanth’s bowling is totally unsuited to the shorter versions of the game.
Ishant Sharma was seen as India’s great fast bowling hope, especially after his performances against the likes of Ricky Ponting on India’s last tour of Australia four years ago. With his tall frame Sharma was able to work up disconcerting bounce as well as pace. Then, sadly, his performances fell off, partly because of lack of confidence as well as untimely injuries. So it was a relief to note that in recent matches he has been able to get back to something like full fitness and pace. Sharma is a real asset to the Indian cause when he is on song.
Thankfully, the latest crop of Indian quicks seems to be much better than the ones that have come before – Yadav seems to be the best of the lot with his pace and his movement. He also seems to use his brain, an ability that is not exactly a hallmark of Indian fast bowlers of the past. I like his enthusiasm and zest for the game too. Aaron, on the other hand, while comparable in pace to Yadav, does not yet seem to be on the same level. And his much poorer fielding skills are a liability. Of course, the big test for both youngsters is just around the corner when India visit Australia later his month. That tour will either make or break them.
P.S. On Dec 9, it was announced that the injured Varun Aaron has been pulled out of the Indian squad for the Tests in Australia.