Umesh Yadav: Can he finally deliver the goods?

Umesh Yadav: Can he deliver the goods?

All eyes will be set on Zaheer Khan when India will take the field on 18^th December against the Proteas in the 1^st test match. Expectations from Zaheer khan are expectedly sky rocketed. However, more than Zaheer Khan, I would like to keep my eyes on Umesh Yadav.

Bowlers like Yadav are of a rare kind in India. He is probably the only bowler in country currently who can bowl consistently around 145 kph mark.

The remarkable aspect of Yadav is his speed. It is a well-known fact that most of Indian bowlers who are genuinely quick at the beginning of their careers lose their steam right after an injury. This is where Yadav stand outs! Injuries didn’t have an impact on his bowling speed till now, and he has been injured quite a few times in his short career.

There are many things to like about Yadav’s bowling. His action his very simple yet it is very slick. He can move the ball both ways. He extracts the zip from the wicket and is capable of hurrying the batsman. He has got an effective bouncer and can bowl yorkers, a trait missing from the armour of almost every Indian bowler.

Despite possessing all these qualities, Yadav has not been able to get the success that was expected of him.

Bowling at fast pace alone won’t make a bowler successful. Shaun Tait, Mohammad Sami, Tino Best are best examples of it. Their success has been limited because they never had control on their line and length.

Line and length are two most important aspects of fast bowling. Even if the bowl is not swinging and there is no help from the pitch for that matter, an impeccable line and length can lead to good results. Line and length can make or break a fast bowler.

Currently the biggest of problem of Umesh Yadav is that neither he is able to hit the right lengths nor is he bowling to one line resulting in leaking way too many runs.

And this is where the role of captain, coach and selectors come into play. He should be told he has the confidence of people who matters. He should be allowed to express himself.

At this junction India cannot afford to lose a potential talent of Umesh Yadav. Yes, his performance in the recent ODI’s against South Africa was below par but Yadav has always been an average bowler in the limited overs format.

However, the good news is that India’s next assignment is two test series against the number one test team. And Yadav, has performed considerably well in the longer format.

He was the only bowler who looked like getting a wicket when India received 4-0 drubbing in Australia two years back. Even in the last test that he played against England last year, he looked really good and picked up four wickets in the match.

What is more remarkable is his strike rate of only 46.4 balls per wicket even is he has played only nine Test matches. India should not mind if Yadav leaks a few runs but picks up more wickets. No team can win a Test match without picking 20 wickets and to do so a team needs genuine wicket takers.

In the age of T20, scoring rate of teams have improved. Bowlers are going for more runs. Even the bowlers like Steyn, Johnson and Anderson go for more than three runs per over in Test matches. It should be okay if Yadav too goes for same number of runs but keep picking up wickets.

These are really good times to be a fast bowler. In last couple of weeks two fast bowlers have utmost impact on their oppositions. Mitchel Johnson and Dale Steyn have ruthlessly decimated two of the most celebrated batting line ups.

There is hardly a thing that could match a sight of fast bowler hitting the timber in cricket. The adrenaline rush, the thrill one feels when a rampaging fast bowler runs through the opposition is unmatched. An intimidating fast bowler is good enough to create doubts in mind of batsman.

It is not certain if Yadav will find a place in the playing eleven next week. However, it is an opportunity that team management should not loose. Playing in conditions helpful to fast bowling could just be the push Yadav needs. If India has to make an impact outside the subcontinent it is very important that players like Umesh Yadav succeed.

Let’s hope Yadav get a chance to play and if he gets the opportunity to play, it would be up to him to make sure that he makes it count and deliver what is expected of him.