The five-match T20I series between India and South Africa is set to begin on Thursday (June 9) at the Arun Jaitley Stadium, New Delhi. The ‘Men in Blue’ started practicing for the series on Monday, as they look forward to getting ready for the T20 World Cup in Australia this year.
Umran Malik, the 22-year-old speedster from Jammu and Kashmir, impressed everyone with his performance in the IPL 2022, as he scalped 22 wickets in 14 games for the Sunrisers Hyderabad, and bowled the second-fastest delivery of the season at 157 kph.
During a press conference at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in New Delhi, team India Head coach Rahul Dravid gave his take on the pace-sensation.
"Yeah, it is exciting. He certainly bowled quickly and with pace. Another thing that has been interesting for me watching the IPL from the outside is the number of Indian bowlers bowling fast. And obviously, being the coach of all three formats of the game, I would love to see that translated into the longer formats of the game. But it is brilliant in terms of watching Umran in the nets, you can see that he has got that pace," said Dravid to reporters.
"Obviously, he is learning. He is a young boy and he is getting better, improving. The more he is able to play, the better he is going to get. From our, perspective, very happy to have someone like him in the mix. We have to see how much playing time we can give him, we need to be realistic, we have a large squad, it is not possible to give everyone playing XI time.
“I think I am certainly someone who likes to have that consistency, give people time and let him feel settled in the positions. It would be interesting time to see how much playing time we give to Umran, we also have Arshdeep here who is brilliant as well. We have experience in the form of guys who have been with us before, Harshal, Bhuvi, Avesh. There are certain things we need to look at but it is nice and exciting to have a couple of young guys in the mix as well. It has given an opportunity for us to broaden our pool and see what they can do," he added.
Youngsters like Umran Malik and Arshdeep Singh, who fetched appreciation for their performances in the recently-concluded IPL season, have earned their maiden India call-up.
KL Rahul will be leading the Indian side in Rohit Sharma’s absence. Veteran wicketkeeper-batter Dinesh Karthik was called back into the squad, based on his performance for the Royal challengers Bangalore in this IPL edition.
Hardik Pandya, who led Gujarat Titans to their maiden IPL trophy in their debut season, has also made his way back into the squad. Hardik had last played for India in the 2021 T20 World Cup in UAE.
(NDTV inputs)
