Sandeep Sharma, who plays for the Kings XI Punjab in the IPL, has stated in an interview to the Indian Express that he expects a call-up to the Indian team for India’s tour to Zimbabwe after impressive performances in the IPL this season.
Sharma is confident of a call-up on the back of some potent swing bowling performances in the IPL this season. “I feel I have performed and proven enough to break into the Indian team. It’s something beyond my control but I have done my job. It has been a good season for me and it gives me the confidence to receive a call for the upcoming tour of Zimbabwe,” said the Lanky pacer.
The pacer, in fact, feels that he is deserving of a call-up regardless of whether senior members of the national squad were rested for the tour. He said, “I am expecting a call but not because senior bowlers would be rested.”
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Sandeep Sharma had been out of action with a shoulder injury for six months, time which he spent honing his skills as a bowler. Sharma feels that the injury layoff was a blessing in disguise for him as he could spend a lot of time in the nets, practicing deliveries like the slower ball and yorker. He is of the opinion that having a number of variations helps bowlers in the ODI and T20 formats.
Swing is his forte, but not resting on his laurels
Sharma says he knows that his strength as a bowler is swing but he has tried to improve on it by adding speed. He says, “I know swing is my strength and it can get most batsmen in trouble. So I know that if I am able to add speed to my swing, it will be great for my bowling. Not that I want to move from swing to speed, but want to add some speed to my strength.”
The Punjab-based bowler has had an impressive IPL season, after missing out on last season’s tournament through injury. He has taken 14 wickets from 13 matches at an economy of 7.32 in this year’s IPL. He hopes that this performance will be enough to take him into Team India for the tour to Zimbabwe.
India are set to tour Zimbabwe from 11th June onwards. The team is scheduled to play three One Day Internationals and three T20 Internationals. Stars like Virat Kohli and M.S.Dhoni are expected to be rested for the series and Ajinkiya Rahane could be the man who captains the team in Zimbabwe.
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