Afghanistan’s premier leg-spinner and captain Rashid Khan has established himself as one of the best spinners in the world cricket even in a very short span of time thanks to his unique strategy to confuse best in the business as well as his franchise stints across the globe.
Recently, in an Instagram Live Session with Indian wrist-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal, Rashid has revealed that he used to follow leg-spin legends Anil Kumble and Shahid Afridi while growing up as an aspiring spinner and even claimed his bowling run-up was also inspired by the two.
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The 21-year-old further added that he has been idolizing Afridi and Kumble since his early days and that’s one of the reasons he is faster than the usual spinners of the current generation.
The Afghan spin sensation, who likes to bowl back of a length, mixing up with variations, to confuse the batsmen, also revealed that he just used to love watching the bowling videos of Indian spin great Kumble and legendary Pakistan all-rounder on YouTube and learned a lot from the two.
Rashid told Chahal in an Instagram Live session: “I used to follow Anil Kumble, Shahid Afridi a lot. I always liked bowling at a fast pace. Used to watch their bowling and used to love it. I liked bowling fast and playing at home it was difficult to take wickets while bowling slow and so got a habit of bowling fast since childhood. When I used to watch these two on YouTube also, I used to run a lot. My running action is also like them. I had a love for bowling leg-spin since childhood. It was not easy to get the brothers out on slow balls.”
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He also said bowling at the small grounds like Bengaluru and Mohali is quite difficult for him, as the small ground sizes are making it difficult for spinners like him to not leak runs.
The leg-spinner further added, “I don't play specifically for someone but it's difficult to players like AB de Villiers and Virat Kohli in the smaller ground. This makes me think about a lot of things before the match. Grounds in Bangalore and Mohali are very small, there are many things in mind.
Need a bigger boundary because look at their bats, even a mistimed shot goes for a boundary. They clear the boundary. My speed is also a bit fast. Moreover, a person like you (Chahal) and me are made to bowl from the shorter end as the captain takes the risk to lure the batsman.”
Rashid made his Indian Premier League debut in 2017 for Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB), but he now Sunrisers Hyderabad's crucial member for the last three years having won IPL matches single-handedly for his team on multiple occasions. He has taken 55 wickets at an economy of 6.55 for the SRH.
The Afghanistan skipper also admitted that getting the golden opportunity to play in the IPL was a dream come true for him as it fascinating for him to see all big international stars in the cash-rich league.
He signed off by saying, “Three years playing IPL. I played BBL before that and after that. The experience and quality of IPL are very different. It was like a dream come true to play in IPL. I used to watch it on TV and all the big foreign players and coaches are part of it. The crowd experience is also different.”
(With India Today Inputs)
