Pace bowling and development of a pace bowler in India

[fineleg]

Chandan, Thanks for posting the article.

[Keep-It-Cool]

I always thought S S Paul was a very impressive bowler based on the little bit that I have seen of him. Unfortunately, he got derailed by injuries last season ... prior to that, he used to be a regular in sides like the Board President XI that took on touring sides. He is back now .. hope he gets back to his best .... I think he'll be much better than the likes of Bose, Praveen Kumar and Joginder Sharma, who have been hogging the domestic wickets of late.

[Chandan]

S S Paul .

Oh I've seen him. First of all he is really unfit to have even a successful domestic career. Secondly, he is just as quick as Praveen Kumar is but in helpful conditions, he can swing the ball all over and get the batsman in trouble. And this season, he hasn't done anything great--Sharma, Pankaj Singh and even the newbie, Sangwan have been more successful than this fellow.

[Keep-It-Cool]

Oh I've seen him. First of all he is really unfit to have even a successful domestic career.

It has not stopped him yet - 176 wickets in 46 matches with an average of 24 and SR of 52. And, on the fitness front, any list that Munaf makes should be a walk for Paul as well.

[fineleg]

And, on the fitness front, any list that Munaf makes should be a walk for Paul as well.

k-i-c, LOL! @ above. However, you have to note one thing kic, SS Paul (earlier like a year or more back) was poorer than Munaf Patel. Both were useless in fielding and absolute bunnies at #11 in batting, but at that time MP had far more bowling talent than SSP. Dunno how it is now.

[Keep-It-Cool]

k-i-c, LOL! @ above. However, you have to note one thing kic, SS Paul (earlier like a year or more back) was poorer than Munaf Patel. Both were useless in fielding and absolute bunnies at #11 in batting, but at that time MP had far more bowling talent than SSP. Dunno how it is now.

I am not so sure about that. Wasn't the entire excitement around Munaf based on his ability to bowl really quick? And, that clearly was not something he could sustain for long without breaking down. On the fielding front, I dont think anyone is worse than Munaf.

[Chandan]

I am not so sure about that. Wasn't the entire excitement around Munaf based on his ability to bowl really quick? And, that clearly was not something he could sustain for long without breaking down. On the fielding front, I dont think anyone is worse than Munaf.

Then looks like you've not seen Paul, Powar etc. And Paul can only dream for the accuracy that Munaf has and the bounce that he gets.

[Keep-It-Cool]

Then looks like you've not seen Paul, Powar etc. And Paul can only dream for the accuracy that Munaf has and the bounce that he gets.

I have seen both Paul and Powar ... and rate both of them ahead of Munaf. An old woman with acute rheumatoid arthritis would move faster than Munaf does. As for Munaf's accuracy, granted ... bounce, well ... I think we are really talking from distant memory. Btw, do you seriously think 176 wickets in 46 matches with an average of 24 and SR of 52 is a failure at the domestic level??

[Chandan]

I have seen both Paul and Powar ... and rate both of them ahead of Munaf. An old woman with acute rheumatoid arthritis would move faster than Munaf does. As for Munaf's accuracy, granted ... bounce, well ... I think we are really talking from distant memory. Btw, do you seriously think 176 wickets in 46 matches with an average of 24 and SR of 52 is a failure at the domestic level??

No. I didn't say that he was a failure at domestic level. Not at all. In fact he is in my team for Ranji comp even this year. But it is not good enough to break through at international level. And we are talking in this thread about the options that we have for the national team and the prospects who can serve India in future! Meanwhile if you want to read more articles, Fineleg: The Indian attack's backbone crumbles too often for comfort: why? Do we have a process for identifying fast bowlers?

[Keep-It-Cool]

No. I didn't say that he was a failure at domestic level. Not at all. In fact he is in my team for Ranji comp even this year. But it is not good enough to break through at international level. And we are talking in this thread about the options that we have for the national team and the prospects who can serve India in future! Meanwhile if you want to read more articles, Fineleg: The Indian attack's backbone crumbles too often for comfort: why? Do we have a process for identifying fast bowlers?

Of course we are referring to options who can make it to the Indian team. My post was just in reference / response to your earlier comment that Paul was unfit to even have a successful domestic career. Anyway, my call is that Paul (if he gets a chance) will be better than a whole host of others that we are trying out / talking about at this point viz. Bose, Pankaj Singh, Praveen Kumar, Gagandeep, Salvi

[gator]

nice posts, Chandan.... in my opinion,, the bowlers to groom or watch out for the near future would be ishant and pankaj singh. i would ideally like one of abhishek nayyar and Praveen kumar to cement their place in the odi side... Ishant has a nice runup and action and he gets good bounce from 6'5 and bowls around 138kph... wat worries me, is he will be injury prone, just like Nehra... wassup with the delhi lads... they need to put on some more muscle... Pankaj on the other hand is very strongly built and tall and athletic... he definitely needs to work with Sekar and Lillee and improve his speed... he has the athleticism and fitness to clock over 140kph... he is currently averaging around 130kph and i have seen him top out at 135kph.... but he gets good movement... The pleasant surprise and the dark horse in the future would be Salvi... i really liked him when he initially burst on the scene..... he had great accuracy, good seam movement and a decent 135--137kph speed.... i would love for him to get back his old form...

[fineleg]

No. I didn't say that he was a failure at domestic level. Not at all. In fact he is in my team for Ranji comp even this year. But it is not good enough to break through at international level. And we are talking in this thread about the options that we have for the national team and the prospects who can serve India in future! Meanwhile if you want to read more articles, Fineleg: The Indian attack's backbone crumbles too often for comfort: why? Do we have a process for identifying fast bowlers?

Chandan, I assume you meant KIC above, rather than FL. I assume you were talking to him, but good links anyway.

[Chandan]

No. I meant you because you liked the articles I posted previously. KIC was merely discussing about Paul.

[fineleg]

No. I meant you because you liked the articles I posted previously. KIC was merely discussing about Paul.

Ah ok...I got confused since kic and I were referenced as part of the same post. Thanks a lot for posting the links to me.

[Chandan]

Bowling cupboard bare The bowling front has many holes. Five medium-pacers and two spinners is the widely accepted formula with Kumble and offie Harbhajan Singh forming the spin attack. But the medium-pace department looks quitebare. "Where are the bowlers, particularly the opening bowlers," asked a selector. The Australians have made it clear that they would play four fast bowlers in the Test matches. Indian medium-pacers are fighting injuries with Sreesanth and Rudra Pratap Singh having to pass a fitness test. Only Zaheer Khan looks ready for the tour. Munaf Patel has been a passenger in the first two Tests against Pakistan. Left-arm medium pacer Irfan Pathan could yet get a chance though the selectors feel he is still not ready for the Tests. The experienced Ajit Agarkar is liekly to make yet another comeback into the Test team. Newcomer S Tyagi of UP heads the table with 23 wickets in domestic circuit with Pankaj Singh (Rajasthan), Praveen Kumar (UP) and Yo Mahesh (TN) not far behind. ------------------------------------------------------- So the day has finally arrived when the simple fact has dawned to selectors that playing non-stop cricket takes a heavy toll on players, especially bowlers. Zaheer : struggling with ankle injury RP Singh: recuperating from side strain Sreesanth: might not recover from the shoulder injury before Perth test. Who are the bowlers then for this important tour?

[Chandan]

So now the news has hit hard: None of the frontline pace bowlers are either fit for the 3rd test vs Pak at Bangalore or for the tour Down-Under! What has happened to them? Fast bowlers are the key if India are to repeat their 2003-4 performance in Australia. However, with S. Sreesanth ruled out due to a shoulder injury and the other four main bowlers suffering niggles, the national selectors were forced to name 24 probables instead of announcing a 16-man squad for the Test series Down Under. The following are the bowlers who are carrying injuries. Let's hope they are available for selection when the squad is finalised on December 12. ZAHEER KHAN Nature of injury: Has a problem with his landing heel. Suffered the injury during the Kolkata Test. Is rested for the third Test as a precautionary measure. If fit, will spearhead the attack in Australia. RUDRA PRATAP SINGH Nature of injury: Side strain. Was on the bench in the first two Tests against Pakistan and is rested for the third. Likely to be available for the Australian tour. MUNAF PATEL Nature of injury: Mild back strain on the right side, which restricts muscle movement. The injury-prone speedster is rested for the Bangalore Test as a precautionary measure and is likely to be available for selection. AJIT AGARKAR Nature of injury: Sore shoulder. The speedster, who hasn't played a Test for almost two years, suffered the injury during Mumbai's Ranji Trophy tie against Maharashtra. While he has been rested for the next match, the Mumbai team doctor assures he should be fit in five days. -------------------------- Apart from that, at the domestic scene, Salvi is injured and so is Sangwan. How are these injuries been looked after? Is something been done to get at least three of the bowlers fit and firing for Australia? link Sreesanth, who sustained a shoulder injury in the last ODI in Jaipur, met an orthopedic surgeon in New Delhi and was given a set of drills. It was understood that he was advised to undergo surgery, and he had also been in touch with an ayurvedic practitioner in Coimbatore. So yeah! A player to whom a surgery has been recommended is giving himself ayurvedic treatment and BCCI is doing nothing about it. Dhondy? You listening to me? You were getting excited at the false dawn. The sky is still pitch dark!!

[Chandan]

It seems that there is still hope. Ravi Shastri is determined to change the NCA from a non-functional unit to a fully functional one with a proper coaching structure which will be used in honing the skill of the younger players. No compromise on quality: Shastri Principal Correspondent Bangalore: The National Cricket Academy Chairman Ravi Shastri declared that there will be ‘no compromise on quality’ in the activities of the academy. “If you want to go forward, quality is an important area. The NCA will be for the elite players, those who are in the ‘A’ teams, the under-19 sides and also the fringe players who are not in the Indian team. They will all get an opportunity to come here. It will be for those players who are just one step away from playing for the country,†Shastri said after the academy’s review-committee meeting here on Thursday evening. Besides Shastri, the meeting was also attended by Dav Whatmore, NCA’s Director of Operations, along with committee members led by BCCI Secretary Niranjan Shah, M.P. Pandove, Ajay Shirke, Shivlal Yadav and others. During the course of the meeting, former India spearhead Javagal Srinath was also nominated to the committee. Additional support-staff Shastri also hinted at the recruitment of additional support-staff like physio Paul Close and trainer Paul Chapman, who recently worked with the Bangladesh team. “Yes we discussed these names. There will be a fast bowling coach, there will be trainers, there will be bio-mechanist, there will be someone who will handle mental skills as well. It will be a good place for a youngster,†Shastri said. He added that even the practice pitches will be under scrutiny. “There will be someone in charge to ensure that the pitches we get here are first-class. It is important for someone playing here that he gets good pitches,†Shastri said. Shastri also mentioned that the NCA’s structure and training paradigm’s will be gradually replicated in the zonal academies. He however refused to comment on Gary Kirsten’s appointment as the coach of the Indian team. “I was in the committee that selected Gary and he has been appointed. The chapter is closed. A week back I would have said that negotiations are on but now that he has been appointed, there is nothing more to say,†Shastri said. ---------------------------------------------- And the batting coach has already been chosen: Gundappa Viswanath appointed NCA batting coach Now I'm waiting to see who the fast bowling coach and fielding coaches are. It'll also be interesting to see how much will it help the fringe players and the younger players.

[Chandan]

There have been a couple of promising new ball bowlers this season. One of those is SM Shoaib. Man like SM makes Hyderabad's future perfect Anam Arsalan, Hindustan Times Email Author Hyderabad, December 11, 2007 First Published: 20:07 IST(11/12/2007) Last Updated: 20:36 IST(11/12/2007) A smooth open-chested action and an equally lethal delivery, that's Shoaib at his best. No he isn't Shoaib Akhtar but SM. Shoaib, Hyderabad's spearhead. "He is a different bowler, and I am different," asserts the six-foot five-inch bowler, who made his Ranji debut against Bengal this season. "Still I would like to meet him," he adds on second thoughts. The reason he is here is because as many as nine players from Hyderabad have defected to the rebel Indian Cricket League. "I made my debut this season but I had been playing for long," justified Shoaib. "In fact I was a part of the Hyderabad XI team that played against the South Africa in a tour game in November 2005". He continued, "Shaun Pollock was impressed by my performance and had advised me to concentrate on my fitness." "I was part of the Under-22 squad too. But I didn't play last year as I was down with injury. I had a back spasm." And according to him ICL wasn't the only reason he got an opportunity to move to the top league. "It's because of my performances in the Under-22 and at the league level. I had even performed on spin-friendly tracks like Vizag," added the 20-year old. Interestingly, his action wasn't as smooth as it looks now. "I used to bowl side-on and that often led to injuries. I changed it this year on the insistence of our bowling coach Kanwaljit Singh and have been doing well since then." Though he didn't take any wickets on Monday, but was impressive on Sunday. He finished the day with figures of 11-5-19-2. In the same league as him is A. Lalith Mohan. At 17-years he is the youngest in the Hyderabad squad. The left-arm orthodox spinner who too made his debut this season, is not a part of the playing eleven here. He had to make way for Shoaib keeping in mind the nature of the track which has assisted the pacers. And he isn't cribbing at all. "I am just happy to be a part of the squad and so are my parents," said the boy who is skipping college. --------------------------------------------------- No way India material, these guys. Anyone has any articles about M Hussain of Mumbai and Awana of Delhi?

[Chandan]

Miffed MCA drops Munaf Apart from missing the flight to Australia, Munaf Patel will most likely have to find a new domestic team next year after the Maharashtra Cricket. Association (MCA), with whom he is playing his third season as a professional, complained about his "unprofessional attitude". Munaf, who was to join the Indian team in Australia as the 17th member only after proving his fitness in the Ranji Trophy, was "dropped" for Maharashtra's last Super League tie against Karnataka, which begins on Tuesday The reason given: he was not traceable for Maharashtra's last two league matches. According to a MCA source, the association will "certainly not renew Munafs contract, which expires at the end of this season". MCA president Ajay Shirke, however, was at his diplomatic best when asked whether the association will renew their contract with Munaf. "Before the 2005-6 season, the managing committee had chalked out a policy of recruiting three professionals to help develop local talent. Now though we have enough home-grown talent which is ready for firstclass cricket. So we may not have any professional cricketer next year It will be up to the managing committee to decide at the end of this season." Still, Shirke was upset with Munafs behaviour "Ever since he lost his place in the Indian team (after the second Test against Pakistan), we haven't heard anything from him," he said. "He was supposed to join the team for the match against Saurashtra (in Nagothane from December 17-20). Our chairman of selectors (Pandurang Salgaokar) was trying to call him up for over a week, but Munaf just didn't respond. As a result, we had to drop him for the last league game." Shirke said that Munaf and his family finally got in touch with MCA on Saturday, a day after he was dropped from the side. "They wanted to know when and where he should join the team," Shirke said. "But how can we risk having such a player who was not taking the Indian board's directive to prove his fitness seriously?" ------------------------------------------------------------- Why on earth can't BCCI manage one temperamental player, especially when the country is so thin in the bowling department? Could they not have sent him straight to the academy to rehabilitate and then join Maharashtra for the Ranji? How can a player become untraceable? Why on earth can we not manage our players and bring them on track instilling "professionalism" in them? And this way Munaf blew his last chance to visit Australia?

[fineleg]

Chandan, Munaf Patel is ridiculous. It is best he is shown the finger, and asked to improve if he wants to or just GET LOST!