Praven Kumar: The Winter Solution?

Everybody who is following the Indian domestic cricket season and awaiting the forthcoming tours by England and Australia realizes that bowling remains the biggest issue for the Indian team. Firstly, their bowling lacks the pace that can put some sort of scare into batsmen who are becoming more immune to the cricket ball with the T20 vaccine. Secondly, the spinner's lobby too is woefully short of displaying anything pleasing. Considering this scenario and the fact that these two tours will be held towards the end of 2012 and the early part of 2013, the Indian cricket selectors might want to consider Praveen Kumar. Let me explain
what I am trying to say here: during this time of the year, there is going to be a bit of nip in the air and off the wicket no matter how much the groundsmen manipulate them according to the liking of MS Dhoni and those in favor of preparing spin-prejudiced bowling strips. If these weather conditions are factored-in, and Praveen Kumar's ability to swing the ball both ways and bowl well with the old ball analyzed, the selectors might find themselves sitting on a solution that they haven't even considered. Please let us be honest with ourselves. Ishant Sharma is not going to bounce-off the Aussies or Brits on these wickets. Zaheer is as injury-prone he was two seasons ago and Umesh Yadav is still raw, no matter how fast he bowls.

Pankaj Sing: The Perpetual Outsider?

He is tall, has got the built for being a fast bowler, packs-in sufficient experience having toiled on the dusty pitches of India and is consistent beyond doubt: the man I am talking about is Pankaj Singh. For some strange reason that is beyond any realm of reasoning, one of the best-performing fast bowlers from the Indian domestic circuit has never been given his due. To his credit, Pankaj Singh has always bowled consistently and that is his prime forte. He is not as fast as Mornie Morkel and cannot hurry the batsmen like Dale Steyn. However, he has the gumption and the discipline that is needed to trouble batsmen in one-dayers and Test matches. Inexplicably, the Indian selection committee have exhibited a shocking case of myopia when considering Pankaj Singh despite
the fact that the likes of Zaheer and Irfan have not been performing up-to-the-mark and Umesh Yadav is still learning the ropes. What India missed during their drubbing in England and Australia was the presence of one, medium-fast consistent bowler who could keep the batsmen on the backfoot without  doing something too heroic. With the English and Aussies arriving, I hope the selectors will wake-up and realize that Pankaj Singh is perhaps the answer to the bowler's conundrum that continues to haunt the national cricket team.

Is Umesh Yadav the next big bowler from India?

He can hardly speak a word in English and he has that raw, out-of-this world kind of expression on his face but Umesh Yadav can do one thing that most Indian fans have been desperately waiting for and that is, He bowls fast and I mean, consistently fast without looking as if he is really exerting himself. Playing for the Delhi Daredevils in IPL 2010, this young bowler from Bihar has been exemplary in his first stint in competitive cricket. Further, he has not even played for his state side on a consistent basis and yet, he can bowl steadily at around the 145 km/hr mark.If you are an Indian fan that much speed is perhaps the maximum that any Indian bowler has ever generated. If Yadav can put in some eye-catching performances in the domestic scene, it is just a matter of time before this lad will be seen sharing the new ball with Zaheer. Ishant Sharma must be thinking how fast can life turn around:(. However, he is still young and capable of making a comeback...at least, I hope so. There have been just too many disappointments in the past with the likes of Irfan Pathan falling apart. It is still a mystery what actually happened to the young Pathan who was supposed to be the next, Wasim Akram. However, there seems to be something more to Umesh than what meets the eye. Firstly, he doesn't really exert himself and yet, he hits the 140 Ks mark with regular ease. This does point to the potential of being quick in the league of someone like Brett Lee. But then again, these are very early days in his career and these are just the first impressions....keeping my fingers crossed. Further, his bowling action is such that he doesn't exert too much pressure on his back and lower limbs, something that has been the scourge for most of the quick bowlers over the last five years.