Indian cricketer in focus: Mohit Sharma - reaping the fruits of consistency

Mohit Sharma

At 5 feet 11 inches, Mohit Sharma isn’t intimidating, and pales in comparison to Ishant Sharma and Umesh Yadav.

He, therefore, does not trouble the batsmen with deliveries that bounce awkwardly. He is not very quick either. But what the Haryana pacer lacks in pace, he more than makes up for it with his accuracy.

And it is this facet of his play that has paid rich dividends leading to a dream run first as a CSK pacer and later culminating in a flight ticket to Zimbabwe.

Mohit Sharma featured in 15 CSK outings this year, which in itself is something remarkable considering he was one of the uncapped players in this year’s edition of the IPL. Not many were familiar with his name, and regarded (or disregarded) him as another such name that the IPL throws up each year, only to fizzle out later.

The staunchest of CSK devotees probably thought of him as ‘the’ bowler, with nothing remarkable, except for his discipline, someone who fits the ‘Munaf’ mould, has a pretty good control over line and length, and bowls at a steady channel outside the off stump with subtle out-swingers. And those of us who love to hate CSK would have scratched their heads, and feigned ignorance about the new kid on the block.

No one could have been faulted for thinking that he looked out of place in the CSK starting XI considering the way the team was packed with India internationals. He was, however, persisted with. As the tournament progressed, his skills proved undeniable, and he slowly emerged as the team’s go to man in the power-plays, finishing with a total of 15 scalps in the first six overs which was second only to Johnson’s 16. Throw in his economy rate of 6.43, and you have world class stuff right there.

He, however, wasn’t a Bumrah, but had to take the relatively difficult route of domestic cricket, and resort to persistence and hard work without forgetting the basics: play to your strength. Everything else will, and did, fall in place.

Having made his Ranji trophy debut for Haryana in the 2011-12 season, his performances weren’t of that sort which will force anyone to sit up and take notice. He played just three matches en route a semifinal finish. Economical but ineffective, hence unimpressive: the wickets just weren’t coming.

The next season saw a disastrous start to the Haryana campaign in the Ranji tournament. Harshal Patel, their strike bowler as well as RCB recruitee, was sidelined with an injury for the first three Haryana matches in the 2012-13 season, and this earned him a place in the team. And he grabbed this opportunity with his heart, not just hands.

It was his ability to transform from being a support cast to strike bowler, his coach quips, which has played a great role in his transformation.

CSK lost its first three matches at home, the only saving grace being Mohit who picked up 19 scalps in these games, troubling the batsmen constantly. The Ranji season ended with him taking 37 wickets, the fifth highest, including three 5-wicket hauls. Talent scouts from the CSK camp zeroed in on him, Bichel was convinced about his talent, and the next thing we know, he was donning the yellow jersey.

Mohit Sharma

As a matter of fact, he was being pursued by at least three franchises, but was eventually pocketed by the Super Kings.

Thereon, there was no kind of looking back for this Haryana lad.

With the wickets column after the conclusion of IPL 2013 adding up to 20 scalps that boasts of big international names like Warner, McCullum, Yuvraj et al, who all succumbed to an obdurate adherence to accuracy, he earned the backing of Dhoni, and consequently featured in almost all CSK matches.

And if Dhoni backs a player relentlessly, it is hard for the selectors to not acknowledge him.

As if on cue, came this tour to Zimbabwe at a very crucial juncture, both in terms of his career and taking into account how the selectors are trying to identify and groom talent before the preparations for the World Cup defence take full swing. Almost all regular faces in the bowling department have been rested, and it would be great to see how he fares at the international level.

Talent is there all right, and this will probably be a test of his temperament and adaptability should the team management choose to allow him to let out steam in Zimbabwe, which seems more than likely.

“I’ll be ready when the moment comes”, he lets out confidently.