Proper bowler management missing: Umesh Yadav

[Mosher]

Interesting interview of Umesh. Good on Umesh that he is concentrating on accuracy without sacrificing pace. Great attitude to have as a fast bowler "I will never compromise on pace till the day I am playing cricket." 

Umesh, how would you describe your growth as a bowler during these last two Test series against Sri Lanka and South Africa?

Sri Lanka was a more important phase for me personally. Before that series, I had been in and out of the team and my spot in the Test squad was not at all confirmed. So it was great when I was called up again to the Test side, and even though I haven't played continuous matches in these two series, I am very happy with the way I have bowled.

This is because, before the Lanka series, I wasn't swinging the ball too much and I even thought that I had lost the ability to move the ball. After the Lanka tour, I felt I had regained that movement and to a certain extent I was consistent in my line and length as well. Accuracy is a big point for me and I have concentrated on that a lot.

I knew what to do and have tried to do that. In that respect, the South Africa series was personally very important. The last Test in Delhi was perhaps my best performance of the year. I felt very good bowling there, at least 80-90 percent deliveries landed where I wanted them to, and no one can say I was not accurate.

What was the issue with not getting enough movement? And was the need to generate more pace hampering it?

I would say my basics were going wrong. I was not bowling with rhythm, and when that happens, a lot can go wrong. For example, the wrist position can go wrong. When my rhythm was not good, I felt that I was pushing the ball through. It affected my consistency and I couldn't control the line and length. So I have learned that rhythm is vital to my bowling and then I can focus on both pace as well as swing.

And I want to develop movement on pace only otherwise swing alone won't matter. If I bowl slower, then I can only attack the batsmen with the new ball. What will I do with the old ball then? So pace is very vital to my bowling.

Talking more this pace issue, there were some criticism about it, and indeed suggestions that you should concentrate more on line and length.

Everyone is entitled to his or her opinion. But I am here because of pace. I am playing international cricket because pace helped me rise through domestic cricket. Swing, and bowling good line/length didn't bring me to the Indian team or to international cricket. Pace made my name, and I got selected because of it. I was known as someone who could bowl at pace and take wickets by moving the ball with pace. As I explained my focus is always on being accurate with line and length, but with pace. I will never compromise on pace till the day I am play cricket.

Coming back to your rhythm then, how tough it is when you have to sit out a couple matches in a long series? How does a bowler cope with maintaining his rhythm then?

During away tours, you work with the support staff. But during the South Africa series, I was released to play Ranji Trophy. The main point was to do everything I do whilst playing international cricket, follow the same process and then observe the results. It is the key to maintaining rhythm. It worked for me, since I played in Mohali and then missed two Tests before playing in Delhi, which was my best performance. It has helped my confidence level and I have just finished playing the Vijay Hazare Trophy, and I am happy to have maintained my rhythm going into 2016.

You talked about working with the support staff. Can you describe any particular inputs that you might have received?

Actually, it was our bowling coach Bharat Arun who noticed the changes in my rhythm and how it was affecting my bowling. He told me that when I change how I run, whether slow or fast, or even something different, it impacts my normal rhythm and even my wrist position. He told me to be consistent in my bowling process, and he told me that I look a different bowler when I don't deviate from it too much. I have used his advice and I have liked the results.

I can say I am a different bowler now, especially controlling the ball accurately, about 80-90 percent. I have also followed the advice of my coach Subroto Banerjee, who follows my bowling and is one call away whenever I have a problem. Our Vidarbha coach, Paras Mhambrey, has also spoken to me about rhythm and loading of my bowling action. When all your coaches are talking about the same thing, it helps clear your mind.

You also worked with Rahul Dravid during your time with the India A team earlier in the season. What did you learn from him as a coach?

Rahul bhai is vastly experienced, and I have known him for a long time. I drew from his experience as a batsman who has played so many matches and known so many situations. All situations are different and his input was very crucial in understanding the mind of a set batsman. He knows how a batsman thinks when he is well set, or when he is looking to defend or attack, what line/length he is looking to play or not play. Only an experienced player/classical batsman like him can tell you these things, and that's what we spoke about. It helps me modulate my bowling in different situations.

Moving on then, pitches in the South Africa series came up for some debate. How does a fast bowler's role change on such pitches?

Quite a bit actually. In the subcontinent it is always about supporting the spinners. But on such pitches, where you get fewer overs, you have to make use of the situation whenever you bowl. When the captain gives us the new ball, the aim is to get 1-2 early wickets, that's the thinking. Then it is about waiting for your turn with the old ball, and using any reverse swing that might be available. It is about control and whatever is for team's benefit. When we go abroad, spinners perform that role, controlling and supporting from one end. When we play in India, the role reverses. Every team plays to its strengths at home, and we played to our strong point. Having said that, the pitches in Bangalore and Delhi Test were quite good. They had something for both spinners as well as fast bowlers.

How do you rate the importance of this series win against South Africa, particularly as it came on the heels of a series win in Sri Lanka?

The team wasn't double-minded about how we approached this series. Our aim was to win matches, period. There was no other thinking or distraction, about losing or drawing, or pitches. We were playing to win. This is our strong point, we are very clear in our minds about our approach. The focus was also the same. Everyone knew their roles in the team and we had a one-track mind. I think that is a very big positive.

Let's talk about limited-overs now. India hasn't enjoyed much success in the shorter formats since the ODI World Cup. Do you agree the bowlers are to blame for it, especially against South Africa at home?

Yes, the planning from our attack wasn't good. The wickets weren't slow enough either, but we didn't follow our plans accordingly on such wickets. For example, whether it was yorkers or reverse swing, we couldn't control them and lost the series. We set fields to different batsmen but we didn't bowl according to those settings. Almost every bowler conceded at six-plus per over, and just like that, we were chasing 300-plus. It gets very difficult to score 300-plus every time you bat. So we have to improve how we execute our plans going ahead.

That execution bit came together in the World Cup though, didn't it? You were part of a troika, with Mohammad Shami and Mohit Sharma, which bowled out almost every opposition.

Normally, tours to Australia have been good for me. You get hard wickets there and when you put in the effort, there is good carry for the ball. I enjoy bowling fast there. When you go out of the subcontinent, you have to make changes in your bowling. There is change in length most of all, and it is different for different places. In England, where I played only ODIs last summer, the condition of the ball matters a lot. It has to stay in good condition and you need steady bowlers.

In Australia, we played the Tests and the triangular series before the World Cup. And we realized we can play here, we have acclimatized to these conditions, because we were not new over there. We had spent two months already there. We made the necessary adjustments and planned accordingly. The use of bouncers was key for us. The grounds are very big, especially through covers and midwicket, so if you make the batsmen play there, there is chance to get them caught whenever they don't connect properly. We bowled really well during the World Cup, as a unit, and we enjoyed each other's company.

So, going to Australia again to start an important ODI/T20I season, you already know what needs to be done to change India's fortunes in the shorter formats. How vital is it to regain winning form in this upcoming series Down Under?

Even when our batting or bowling has been bad, we have had confidence in our fielding. We will need to use that to inject confidence in our bowling. We will need to figure out different plans to different batsmen, and we need to concentrate on how to execute these plans. We know we can use the bouncers well, but even then we have to be mindful of the bounce and not get carried away. Then we can use slower deliveries. The basic point is we need to know how and where to use these weapons, and build pressure on the batsmen. That is something we have not done well recently.

We have the experience, and it is just about execution for us. If we win one match, we could go on a roll and perhaps win the series. That has to be our target. This Australian tour can give us momentum going into the World T20 and motivation will be high in the squad to achieve that.

Last but not the least, this is going to be a particularly long season of limited-overs cricket, with Asia Cup, World T20 and the IPL, finishing only in May. How vital is it to manage bowlers' workload, especially in the national team's context?

We don't really have proper bowler management at the moment, and we need this. We need to know which bowler has how much workload, how much he should play, how many deliveries he has bowled in nets or matches, etc. Bowling for six months on the trot is just not possible. Look at bowlers in Australia and England; they are properly rested. They have different bowlers for different formats, and the number of deliveries bowled by them is properly monitored.

We too need to keep a count of the overs we bowl, say, in six months. People don't see that a bowler plays all formats, and because of that he has bowled so many overs, is tired or has niggles. It hampers how you bowl, in terms of your muscles or your brain and your thinking. Rotation is a key aspect, and it allows to take care of niggles and proper rest. If we apply that to our bowler management, fresh bowlers will last longer and will play longer for India.

http://www.cricbuzz.com/cricket-news/77019/proper-bowler-management-missing-umesh-yadav

 

[Shivaji bhonsle]

Good interview.

[MCcricket]

Umesh is a natural talent, good to see he has the right frame of mind or any other Bowler would have been destroyed by Dhoni until now, he will prosper under Virat only problem now is ODI, n playing under Dhobi, he can be an impact Bowler for us and swinging the ball at pace either of the wicket or in air is difficult to face for any batsmen, Shami, Umesh, Aaron and a left armer could make up a good attack with Ashwin being world class

Edited January 7, 2016 by MCcricket

[Mosher]

Its good that Umesh is focusing on improving his accuracy. Another thing he needs to improve is his body language, he should become a bit more aggressive when bowling. Most of the times he appears a bit laidback on the field. 

Edited January 7, 2016 by Mosher

[Rightarmfast]

For me the best part was that his bowling coaches are Subroto Banerjee and Paras Mhambrey. Both were above average medium pacers during their time, who never made it big. I am sure they can give good inputs to Umesh.

[express bowling]

Umesh needs to improve his ability to bounce the ball more steeply.  He should work on that aspect.

Aaron, who is a bowler of similar pace, similar muscularity, similar height and almost similar age... gets much steeper bounce.

[Ankit_sharma03]

Umesh needs to improve his ability to bounce the ball more steeply.  He should work on that aspect.

Aaron, who is a bowler of similar pace, similar muscularity, similar height and almost similar age... gets much steeper bounce.

Also, were i feel umesh cud add to his game 

Is his aggresion n body language part

HE shud look in eyes of batsman n sledge a bit

They both shud have a bit of aura of bowlers with pace

 

[Vilander]

Its time 4 da pic...yoo