This week I have quite a few things to report. India perhaps have unearthed a fast bowler in Umraan Malik. David Warner was not treated well by his franchise. James Anderson training his sights on the biggest scalp in the Australian team. How was the cricketing world last week?
Let me start with Anderson training his sights on Smith
The Ashes which will get underway in about a couple of months, will test the resolve of perhaps the senior-most cricketer on the planet. James Anderson. He is 40 and still bowls with the same guile and skill. In the absence of fast bowlers like Archer, Stone & Stokes, the importance of Anderson has increased tremendously. With more than 600 wickets, there is lot of expectations on Anderson notwithstanding his age. His performances in Australia is not that great. He averages just over 3 wickets per test. 2017 Ashes was a disaster for Anderson. Four years down the lane, would he have improved? We will have to wait. Australian grounds, the climate and the crowd is bound to test the resolve of Anderson? Will he be able to measure up?
Having said that, Anderson is training his sights on the biggest scalp of all the Australian batsmen. Steven Smith.
Smith has proved to be Australia’s nemesis over the last couple of Ashes series. He amassed 647 runs in 2017 and a further 774 in 2019. His wicket eventhough not for cheap, atleast for a less score will ensure Australia do not runaway with the game. Anderson has had an excellent series against India. His renewed his rivalry with Kohli and came up trumps. He is confident of carrying the same spirit into the Ashes and against Smith.
“As a bowler you always look at the best player, and for me over the last three, four or five years, Steve Smith’s been Australia’s best player,” Anderson told Fox Cricket’s Road to the Ashes podcast. “He’s been the one they rely on for their volume of runs, obviously supported by guys around him like [David] Warner and [Marnus] Labuschagne recently. But he’s been their go-to in the last few years, so he’ll be the one that we will be keen to get out early.”
Tough Australian grounds
The first test will be at the Gabba, a ground where England have traditionally struggled. It is a wicket that supports fast bowlers who can hit the deck rather than seamers like Anderson. Hence, his task is really cutout.
Anderson’s biggest challenge will be his perseverance. Five tests over a period of 2 months on the tough Australian wickets, Australian heat and with a Kookaburra ball, will he be fit enough and effective enough until the final innings? That remains to be seen. England must rotate their bowlers. Otherwise, they will have serious problems. Anderson himself has said,
“The likelihood of playing all five at my age, to be honest at any age in Australia, [is slim].”
David Warner’s exit not handled properly?
Warner was dropped from captaincy as well as from the Sunrisers team itself after a couple of games in the UAE. Warner had led SRH to their only IPL title a few years ago. However, his failures in 2021 have ensured that he was out of the team. It is not clear whether he will be back with SRH during next year’s auction. He is certain that the franchise will not give him any explanation as to the reason he was dropped.
“The disappointing thing for me was not being explained why I was dropped as captain,” he said.
“I had four bad games, two run-outs in that, on slow and low wickets in Chennai. It’s difficult, a bitter pill to swallow but I don’t think I will ever get answers and must move on. It’s time to look forward, there’s another auction coming up. I’d love nothing more than to represent Sunrisers still, but the decision remains with the owners and what direction the franchise wants to go in.”
I do feel that Warner deserved better. He has had some fabulous years for the franchise and to repeat that he remains the only captain to win the IPL. Just a few poor games must not mean that he is dropped from both captaincy and from the team. One of Moody, Laxman, Murali or Bayliss must have explained the situation to him. He certainly deserved better.
Umraan Malik, the fast bowler
IPL may have unearthed one more fast bowler who may go onto represent India at the international level in the near future. Umraan Malik bowled at scorching pace in the last few games for SRH. It is another matter why he wasn’t given a chance right at the beginning. Everyone knows that Kohli loves fast bowlers and want to develop an attack based on fast bowlers. He must have been thrilled at the sight of Malik. It is not that India never had fast bowers. Various times during their career, Srinath, Bumrah, Shami, Irfan and Ishant have bowled in excess of 150 but have settled for around 143-145. Malik on the otherhand has bowled at 150KMPH consistently. Whether he will be able to bowl at that pace in a test match is a million dollar question.
If Malik is able to bowl at that pace and maintain a good line and length, he will add lot of value to the Indian bowling. It remains to be seen how the BCCI and the Indian team management protects Malik because genuine pace bowler is tough to find.