Forget IT boom, Welcome the Pace Boom.

[gator]

There is definitely a marked change in the indian pace bowling reserves since those dulll days of 90s after the void left by Kapil, binny Madan lal and Chetan sharma in the 80s... Srinath was definitely the fieriest ever indian pacer .... but there still is not anyone yet who can fill Srinath's shoes in terms of fire and pace.... By picking Bose for the England tour, the retarded selectors are again sending the wrong message to the youngsters.... go back to ur lazy old ways of dishing out 75 mph apple-pies, we will select u... the facker is less than 25 and wont een bend his back to clock atleast 80 mph.... anyways, a decent article.... NEW DELHI, June 12: India has always been considered cricket's land of slow bowlers, men with supple wrists dedicated to the beguiling and mysterious art of spin. But there's a change in the air and it's coming at express pace as more and more youngsters are turning to fast bowling to make their names. Recent years have witnessed a pace boom in India, with Zaheer Khan, Munaf Patel, Irfan Pathan, Rudra Pratap Singh, Vikram Rajvir Singh, Ishant Sharma, Ashish Nehra and Laxmipathy Balaji all playing key roles. Indian fast bowling coaches believe the number is bound to increase with each year. "We have 8-10 fast bowlers who can fight for four places in the Indian side, which was not the case a couple of years ago," T. A. Sekhar, a coach at Australian speed bowling legend Dennis Lillee's MRF pace academy in Chennai, said. "Talent is there in the country. We will have to be patient to get the desired results." Time was when India relied on spinners to win matches at home and away, with the famous quartet of Bhagwat Chandrasekhar, Bishan Bedi, Erapalli Prasanna and Srinivas Venkataraghavan calling the shots in the 1960s and 70s. Those were the days when an India captain threw the new ball to his opening bowlers only to take the shine off it so that he could press his match-winning spinners into the attack. The emergence of Kapil Dev changed it all in the late 1970s as he proved that India were capable of producing quality pacemen. He was a trend-setter in that he inspired many youngsters to take to fast bowling. Kapil quit international cricket in 1994 with a then Test record of 434 wickets and was regarded as one of the greatest all-rounders in history. He also bagged 253 One-day wickets, as well as scoring 5,248 Test runs and 3,783 runs in the shorter version of the game. The fast bowling trend continued even after Kapil quit as Manoj Prabhakar, Javagal Srinath and Venkatesh Prasad all served India with distinction in the 1990s before the latest crop of fast bowlers took over. The phenomenon is nothing short of a surprise because unhelpful Indian conditions have always discouraged pacemen who have to struggle on low, slow pitches. "Cricket is a batsman's game. We don't come across too many quality pacemen in India because it can be very frustrating for them as the pitches are not sporting," said Sekhar, himself a former Test seamer. "That's why we see youngsters eventually turning to either spin bowling or batting. But we now have a battery of fast bowlers and we must give them an opportunity." With Zaheer back into the groove after a form slump and Sharma making an impressive debut against Bangladesh recently, the fast bowling scene looks promising in India. Srinath, now an International Cricket Council match referee, said the pace-talent hunts were "desperately required" in the country. "I was involved with one such programme and I was amazed to see so many young boys turning up. Such initiatives bring a lot of awareness among youngsters," said Srinath, who has taken 236 Test and 315 One-day wickets. "I must say that not long ago, very few wanted to be fast bowlers. Thankfully, things are changing now." http://cricket.indiatimes.com/India_speeding_into_the_fast_lane/articleshow/2116709.cms

[Ram]

There is definitely a marked change in the indian pace bowling reserves since those dulll days of 90s after the void left by Kapil, binny Madan lal and Chetan sharma in the 80s... Srinath was definitely the fieriest ever indian pacer .... but there still is not anyone yet who can fill Srinath's shoes in terms of fire and pace.... By picking Bose for the England tour, the retarded selectors are again sending the wrong message to the youngsters.... go back to ur lazy old ways of dishing out 75 mph apple-pies, we will select u... the facker is less than 25 and wont een bend his back to clock atleast 80 mph.... anyways, a decent article....

Bose was among the leading wicket-taker in the domestic circuit last season.He has been in contention for quite a while now. What else do you suppose the selectors do ? Not select the the best performer in domestic cricket ? What kind of message will that send to the other domestic players?

[gator]

What kind of message will that send to the other domestic players?

a very good message... if u r young and u r lazy, fuggidit.... here is a challenge... i will give u 30 yrs of cricket history.... show me 75mph bowlers who have set the world on fire consistently.... if u go by domestic performances.... did u watch, Ganguly's bowling last yr in the domestic circuit? it is prettty obvious, the pitches are flat, conditions are hot.... definitely 75 mph line and length bowlers perform better than 87 mph pacers because of their consistency and energy efficiency and also the impatience of our younger breed of domestic batters.... wen u r trying to win a test match and u r trying to bowl out last 4 batters within 20 overs.... try using these pie-throwers...

[Ram]

You dont have to look far Gator .. Our very own bowling coach , Venkatesh Prasad has an impressive record in England.. 15 wickets in 3 test matches at 25... And he wasnt exactly express was he ? I agree , we MUST have one genuine quick in the line-up. but a swing bowler with control could a vital tool in english conditions. Mathew Hoggard bowls in the high 70's/low 80's... wonder why the english are dying to have him back in the team then..

[gator]

Marirs.... Hoggy consistently bowls 83+ and sometimes touched as high as 87 too, last yr in hot conditions in india.... there is a bigggg difference between tht and 75 mph..... secondly... Prasad, at the international level is a flop... he wouldnt have lasted as long in any other team bar bangladesh or maybe Windies.... Thirdly... i am not talking about 95 mph genuine quicks... even our own Srinath has said this multiple times in his interiviews... u got to bowl atleast 135+ to be a successful international bowler..... again big difference between 125 and 135 kph... Fourthly, the question is still open... identify one successful bowler in the international arena who operated consistently at 75 mph....

[Ram]

Fourthly, the question is still open... identify one successful bowler in the international arena who operated consistently at 75 mph....

err.. how bout Anil Kumble ??

[Dhondy]

We are a disgrace on the term "pace". There are no two thoughts about it. Munaf Patel....bwahhahahahaha.

[gator]

We are a disgrace on the term "pace". There are no two thoughts about it. Munaf Patel....bwahhahahahaha.

unfortunately, not many think like tht, Doc.... especially under the retard, Vengsarkar..... he will unearth Bose, bring Mhambrey out of retirement, and select Siddiqui as their spearhead.... and then comes the punch line, 125 kph with movement is good enuf...

[apocalypse]

secondly... Prasad, at the international level is a flop... he wouldnt have lasted as long in any other team bar bangladesh or maybe Windies....

and that guy is our bowling coach. how can you say that about him :hysterical:

[Predator_05]

I saw Bose playing for India 'A' last season and he looked like a very ordinary bowler. I have no clue how this guy found his way into the Indian XI. He is also 28 years old.

[CC1981]

Indians like Pakistanis are unnecessarily obsessed with pace. Ironic, since this is one of the few eras of cricket where the top-of-the-line pace bowlers were medium pacers at best (McGrath,Pollock). Performance in domestic cricket & 'A teams' should be the only criteria for selection to the national team. Otherwise we get totally retarded 'speed merchants' like VRV.

[CC1981]

unfortunately, not many think like tht, Doc.... especially under the retard, Vengsarkar..... he will unearth Bose, bring Mhambrey out of retirement, and select Siddiqui as their spearhead.... and then comes the punch line, 125 kph with movement is good enuf...

Find a bowler in India then who can bowl at 90mph consistently and not spray it around like a total retard.

[Predator_05]

...but Bose has done f*ck all when playing for India 'A' ? I could care less what speed a player bowls at as long as he can take wickets, but Bose offers absolutely nothing - forget pace. He is just a run of the mill Indian pacer who harmlessly slants it across off-stump every ball. They should have picked YoMahesh.

[CC1981]

I could care less what speed a player bowls at as long as he can take wickets,

Which he has at domestic level, thus legitimately staking a claim.

They should have picked YoMahesh.

By domestic standards, YoMahesh is even more harmless.

[Predator_05]

Which he has at domestic level, thus legitimately staking a claim. By domestic standards, YoMahesh is even more harmless.

You have obviously never watched Bose bowl.

[CC1981]

You have obviously never watched Bose bowl.

\ I swear people were saying the exact same thing about McGrath's selection back in 95. Since you've seen them both, can you please explain why this pace-prospect of yours- YoMahesh -has 17 wickets from 6 first class matches last season, at 39.47 average, no five-fers; while this dibbly dobbly Ranadeb has 57 wickets from 8 matches @14.22 , six five-fers & 2 10-fers ?? A guy who can't average below 30 in Indian domestic cricket will do well in international scene ?! Lemme guess- since YoMahesh is younger, all is forgiven & he must be in the team coz you know- Indian senior team exists to groom young teenagers and teach them basics of bowling, correct ??

[gator]

dude.... u got to stop reading and start watching cricket..... Mcgrath bowled at 135+ for 95% of his career.... Shaun Polly bowled at 140+ for the most part unntil last 3 years or so.... him along with Donald form one of the paciest combos.... there is a sea of a differnece between 135 and 125kph... like saying Ganguly with immaculate lne and length will become a mcgrath....

[Lurker]

There is definitely a marked change in the indian pace bowling reserves since those dulll days of 90s after the void left by Kapil, binny Madan lal and Chetan sharma in the 80s... Srinath was definitely the fieriest ever indian pacer .... but there still is not anyone yet who can fill Srinath's shoes in terms of fire and pace.... By picking Bose for the England tour, the retarded selectors are again sending the wrong message to the youngsters.... go back to ur lazy old ways of dishing out 75 mph apple-pies, we will select u... the facker is less than 25 and wont een bend his back to clock atleast 80 mph.... anyways, a decent article....

Gator, while I completely agree with you about Indian selectors not picking out and out fast bowlers I am also going to disagree with you about selection of Ranadeb Bose. I have seen Ranadeb Bose and frankly he has not impressed me. He is young but lacks pace, has the bulk of an Inzamam with a slimmer waist and does not really intimidate batsmen with pace or venom. However what he does have is an ability to swing bowl both ways. And this might help India in England. I am thinking India would go in with 4 seamers and 1 spinners - Zaheer Khan, Sreesanth, RP Singh and Bose as pacers and Kumble as lead spinner. Can't really complain about it. Yeah I am also disheartened not to see too many out and out pacers but Bose has earned it man. Lucky for him a lot of Indian pacers like Nehra and Balaji are injured as well so there can not possibly be a reason not to accomodate him in the team. xxx

[CC1981]

dude.... u got to stop reading and start watching cricket..... Mcgrath bowled at 135+ for 95% of his career.... Shaun Polly bowled at 140+ for the most part unntil last 3 years or so.... him along with Donald form one of the paciest combos.... there is a sea of a differnece between 135 and 125kph... like saying Ganguly with immaculate lne and length will become a mcgrath....

Shaun Pollock had maybe 1% of his deliveries at his PEAK cross 140 kph. Pollock had great BOUNCE- not pace. He was never a FAST bowler. McGrath has for over 90% of his career bowled at 130-135 kph range.

[King]

Gator, I understand your POV but tell me this do you value domestic cricket results and performances? If you do not then what is your yardstick for picking a squad? Although the looks of Bose may not inspire you it is possible you may not have seen enough of him. From what I have read he has been among wickets in domestic cricket and has performed consistently. Ryan Sidebottom is bowling well with his limited pace now against West Indies. Harmison has pace and bounce but he is all over the place and is a captain's nightmare. Meanwhile Sidebottom has been the better of the fast bowlers in the England team. Now Sidebottom isn't quick either but he does the job. Similarly Bose will probably end up as a "Horses for courses" choice. From what I can gather Bose is rewarded for his domestic form which is OK with me. Let's hear from you folks who would have been a better choice?