Known among the finest exponents of swing in the modern-day game, Indian pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar, weighed in over consequences of the interim ban imposed on usage of saliva for ball-shining by the International Cricket Council (ICC) in wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The ICC has discontinued the traditional method of shining the cricket ball, seeing that as a major source of potential on-field Coronavirus spread.
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In the cricketing sense, however, that means bowlers won't have their major aid for swing movement, which has always troubled the batsmen.
"A bowler who can clock 145 kmph won't be affected in any way because he is going to increase the pace of his deliveries. But it does become a challenge for a bowler like me who relies on swing a lot. With no swing, it's all going to be a batsman's game," Bhuvneshwar said in a webinar organised by GainAccess Sports & Entertainment and SportzPower.
"Let's say you are playing in England and the conditions are conducive to swing bowling. But the ball gets old after a few overs and you cannot shine the ball. So a bowler like me will only have half of his ability. It will be a tricky condition and hope ICC comes out with some artificial things using which we can shine the ball."
"Hopefully, after a couple of months, we will figure out how things stand and if we can find a way to shine the ball. Shining a ball is a really important part of cricket, not just for a swing bowler but for a spinner as well. If you don't shine the ball, your ability gets reduced to half," he added.
The sweat is still allowed as a ball-applicator, but Bhuvneshwar reiterated that it doesn't create the kind of weight imbalance the saliva does on the ball.
"Sweat could be a probable replacement for saliva in warmer conditions. If the ICC doesn't allow the use of artificial substance, then sweat is the only natural way to shine the ball."
"However, in colder conditions, there won't be any sweat so how are you going to shine the ball then. It's going to be very challenging for the bowlers."
Bhuvneshwar also talked about the absence of crowds in matches played within the pandemic, saying spectators are a great source of energy for the players involved, but wearing the national colours is motivation enough.
"The spectators matter a lot for us. In fact, I am sure it is true for every sportsperson in any country. The fans cheer for you and it boosts your confidence level. You get some kind of positive energy from the fans. But you also have to acknowledge the fact that when you are playing for your country, you are always at your 100 per cent. There is no better motivation than playing for your country," he said.
"There could be time when there is no one cheering for you. So on such occasions, you might get a bit lethargic on the ground when you are not fielding and are not really active. So in that respect, it's going to be difficult. However, when you go to West Indies, there isn't much crowd who comes for Test cricket."
"So those are the kind of situations when you have to boost yourself and motivate yourself. So as a team, we have to say that we have to give our 100 per cent all the time even though there is less crowd," Bhuvneshwar concluded.
