Zaheer Khan names Umesh Yadav as his successor

File picture of Zaheer Khan and Umesh Yadav

Former Indian pacer Zaheer Khan, who announced his retirement from International cricket, believes that bowler Umesh Yadav has the potential to lead the pace bowling attack in the Indian team, a role he himself had so well essayed, for a long time. The 37-year old felt that with the right guidance and training, Umesh could fill his shoes in all formats of the game, reports One India.

"Umesh is good with pace and the movement he gets. He definitely has got potential and that potential needs to be maximised is what I have been saying", he said.

Umesh has improved as a cricketer many folds since the time of his debut. He bowled well in the 2015 World Cup, finishing as the leading wicket-taker for India. He also played a key role during India’s victorious campaign in the ICC Champions trophy in 2013. Currently, Umesh is one of the quickest bowlers in the Indian bowling line-up.

The former left-arm-seamer who was the go-to bowler for India on many occasions decided to end his career due to his long struggle with injuries. Ever since his debut in early 2000, Zaheer was a force to reckon in the Indian team, leading the bowling attack in the team and guiding the youngsters along the way. His bowling has won matches for India on numerous occasions and he is best known for his ability to move the ball both ways off the wicket and reverse swing the ball.

In the current Indian set-up, Zaheer feels that pace bowling is a crucial aspect and the youngsters needed to approach it the right way. "Among the Indian pacers I think, pace is important and balance needs to be maintained. The attack needs to be settled, it’s a process, you will find the right guys to do the job and right guys who are in the rhythm", he remarked.

Despite his struggle with injuries many times, Zaheer enjoyed a remarkable career with both the ball and the bat, claiming 593 wickets in all formats and proving useful with the bat by scoring more than 2000 runs. In his brief T20 career, he’s also managed to take 17 wickets.

The greatest moment in his career came during the 2011 World Cup at home, where he finished as the joint highest wicket-taker with 21 scalps in 9 matches and in the process, helping India lift the World Cup.

"I think the whole journey has been special, outstanding, and cricket has been my life. It is very difficult to pinpoint one incident. Walking away with lot of fond memories, good friendships, so everything has happened to me at the right moment. But I can say winning the 2011 World Cup here was a great moment for me", he had said in his retirement speech.