Fast bowling in Cricket is rarity. Fast bowling with high consistency is also a rarity. Longevity with fast bowling is rarer among rare. And finding a fast bowler with extreme pace in India hasn’t been easy.
Traditionally, India concentrated and produced spinners more than express pace bowlers. But Javagal Srinath changed the trend of fast bowling in India. Umran Malik is probably the quickest India has found since ‘Mysuru Express’. Bowling consistently over 150 km/hr is not a cup of tea for anyone but Umran is doing his work tremendously.
What requires the most in fast bowling is the accuracy, swing and bowling length and if you have a good pace then, it is a bonus point for you.
We have seen bowlers like Glenn Mcgrath, Mohammad Asif and Chaminda Vaas whose bowling speed is not that much great but they have the good accuracy, control, swing and length over delivery which is a key factor for any bowler. Umran Malik is showcasing his abilities in the ongoing IPL and improving everyday. He’s so young and that’s only good for India.
Experts believe, with time, he would be a great fast bowling asset for India, if maintained with care. With time and experience, he would also learn different skills like swing, seam, deception like slower ones etc. But the coaches usually suggest the young pacers to ‘Just run in and bowl fast’. So far, Umran has been perfectly doing it. His spell against GT was fiery. He took wickets by varying lengths against different batters. Umran Malik also bowled fastest delivery in IPL 2022(157kmph).
Umran Malik after his brilliance in IPL 2022 got selected in Indian squad for T20I series against South Africa. If he will be able to impress selectors in games he will get to play, he can be contender for T20 World Cup to be played in Australia.
