In conversation with the 'Hooghly Express', the charismatic Ishan Porel

Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) injury, a partial tear in his left knee, a Medial Collateral Ligament (MCL) injury, a side strain and a heel injury: A list of career-threatening injures no aspiring pacer would like to associate himself with.

A 21-year-old youngster going by the name of Ishan Porel has battled them all. Conquering these inevitable demons for a medium-pacer, the Hoogly-born has fared rather well. However, he claims it to be just a beginning. The beginning of a robust, yet inspiring career that has already scaled heights that many can only dream of. He is built at 6' 3", and understandably relies on bounce, accuracy and pace.

In an exclusive chat with Sportskeeda, Bengal pacer Ishan Porel reminisced on what has been a short yet eventful journey so far. A career that has seen the highs of an (Under-19) World Cup win, and the lows of several impending injuries.

"Injuries are a part and parcel of the sport, especially if you are a fast bowler. All the injuries that have been mentioned were hard to take in, but I always knew what it meant to be a fast bowler. The stress on the body, for a fast bowler, can have dire consequences but some things aren't in our hands. The only thing that we can do from our side is to maintain our fitness levels, do regular gyming and keep ourselves hydrated," Porel explained.

Having a tall and lanky frame, Porel draws inspiration from successful bowlers possessing similar attributes. Someone like a Morne Morkel, a 6' 4" giant who scripted unprecedented success in international cricket, along with carrying himself carefully during his 12-year career that ended in 2018.

"For a tall fast bowler like me, an injury-scare is always at the back of the mind. But I take inspiration from tall folks like Morne Morkel, who have excelled at the international stage and had a long career. The injuries in the past have helped me realise how to take better care of my body," he added.

Porel's first-class career started at a young age. Before he entered the Under-19 World Cup, he had quite a bit of experience under his belt. But a stint under former Indian captain and Under-19 coach, Rahul Dravid, brought a drastic and a necessary maturity in his outlook towards fast bowling.

Training camps and preparatory games in challenging conditions geared the youngster for an exciting 2018 Under-19 World Cup campaign in New Zealand. Representing the country at the highest stage is precisely the boost Porel needed to kickstart his career.

Ishan Porel in action during the 2018 Under-19 Cricket World Cup

But injuries followed Porel like shadows. A heel injury at the start of the World Cup against Australia derailed his introduction to the cricketing world. But Porel put in the much-needed hard-work in his recovery to give himself a decent chance of excelling in the later stages of the tournament.

"The confidence to win at the biggest stage was always there. Our win against Australia in the opening match by 100 runs boosted our morale, and made us believe that we could go all way. Players like Shaw, Gill and myself had already played first-class cricket before the World Cup, and knew a bit about handling the pressure of playing big matches. So every small detail helped us overcome hurdles as a team," revealed the pacer.

After fearing a premature end, Porel's World Cup started again against Bangladesh, where he regained his lost rhythm. A staggering economy of only 1.60 was what the doctor ordered. Porel carried his form against arch-rivals Pakistan where he rattled the title contenders with some serious pace and bounce.

Porel accredited his most famous spells of fast bowling against Pakistan (four scalps in six overs at an economy rate of 2.83) to coach Dravid, thanking him for keeping the youngsters in the right frame of mind before the high-pressure game.

"As far as my performance is concerned, I stuck to my basics and bowled my heart-out. I had recovered from an injury before the quarter-final against Bangladesh and was looking forward to the big games ahead. Although I didn't take any wicket in the Bangladesh match, I could feel my body getting back in the rhythm which I carried into the next match against Pakistan," said the Hooghly-born.

Thank u #RahulDravid sir for being wall of #IndianCricketTeam Gre🏆🏆 #BoysInBlue #BleedBlue #PrithviShaw #shubhmangill #ManjotKalra #BCCI #India #U19CWCFinal #U19CWC #U19WorldCup #U19WorldCupFinal #INDvAUS #TwitterBestFandom @BCCI pic.twitter.com/WjgQmFYpmn

— Ishan Porel (@ishan_porel) February 3, 2018

"Rahul Sir advised us to take the game against Pakistan as just another match. He said that if we thought too much about the opposition, we could easily be carried away by the moment. An India-Pakistan match is always a high-profile encounter, no matter what level it is being played at. But we were focused on getting the job done... Before the match, he advised us not to pay heed to things being said in social media or other media platforms as it increased pressure on an already big match. His experiences of playing against Pakistan on the big stages helped us get the basics right rather than trying to do something extravagant in the heat of the moment," he said.

The World Cup was won. But what was gained was a string of pace-bowling teenage sensations in the form of Shivam Mavi, Kamlesh Nagarkoti and Ishan Porel.

"As a kid, every cricketer thinks of representing their country in a World Cup. I am fortunate to have been a part of a winning WC team with the Under-19 side. It was a proud moment for each player in the side who put in a lot of hard work to achieve what they did," Porel recalled.

Despite attention-worthy performances, Porel went unsold in two successive IPL auctions (2018 and 2019). The one after the World Cup hurt him more. However, after his fair share of disappointments, he was picked by Kings XI Punjab for his base price of INR 20 lakh in the December 2019 auction.

Ishan Porel will represent KXIP in IPL 2020.

A few of his Bengal teammates like Mohammad Shami will join him as soon-to-be IPL teammates. Although Porel has had limited interactions with Shami, he sounded excited to play and learn from one of the leading bowlers in the country.

"Being picked up by an IPL side is encouraging. But my aim has always been to focus on my cricket rather than trying to achieve results. I went unsold in two successive seasons but continued to work on my fitness and skills to bring myself to that level and still keep improving... As far as Mohammad Shami's impact is concerned, I am yet to have a long and detailed conversation with him but am looking forward to connecting with him at KXIP. He has been India's spearhead for a long time. Before the final, he wished everyone through a video call."

Ishan Porel had a terrific India A tour in New Zealand.

Porel's IPL contract comes in the wake of continued performances in the first-class arena that have helped him gain everyone's attention.

In the 2019 Deodhar Trophy, he was the second-highest wicket-taker, with nine wickets in three games. Porel also took seven wickets in the Syed Mushtaq Ali tournament, at an impressive T20 economy of 5.66

The India-A tour in New Zealand was another feather in Porel's cap, where his three scalps in the opening tour match against New Zealand XI, and a total of five wickets in the two unofficial ODIs against New Zealand 'A' made him the toast of the team.

ICYMI: 13-2-39-5! 👏👏Watch Bengal speedster Ishan Porel's 5⃣-wicket haul against Karnataka. 👌👌Video 👇👇https://t.co/xb7dxboMEb#BENvKAR @paytm #RanjiTrophy @CabCricket pic.twitter.com/eCEGCsLy2e

— BCCI Domestic (@BCCIdomestic) March 1, 2020

His performances on the field well complement Porel's uncanny and a dodgy barnet. His open-chested action, coupled with his surgical precision of line and length, tames batsman like no-one else. And just when you think the embarrassment is over, he ends it with flamboyant celebrations, ranging from WWE's 'You can't see me' (read imitating John Cena) celebration to Cristiano Ronaldo's in football.

One of his recent wickets included that of KL Rahul for a duck in the semi-final of the Ranji Trophy this season. Ironically, Rahul captains KXIP, the IPL franchise that roped in the Porel in the auction.

In The Deodhar Trophy final back in 2019, the Bengal pacer claimed the wickets of Vijay Shankar, Nitish Rana, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Kedar Jadhav and Parthiv Patel, ending with figures of 5/43 in his ten overs for India C.

"I haven't bowled against many big stars of the game, but KL Rahul's wicket was a huge confidence booster. He is the captain of IPL franchise Kings XI Punjab that picked me in the auctions. I try to celebrate each wicket in my way, without any disrespect to the batsman whatsoever. Some words are said in the heat of the moment, but they stays on the field only. Later in the day, he came up to me and spoke kind words. He congratulated me for my spell, and advised me to continue bowling with the same intensity," the pacer clarified.

Porel also mentioned the sacrifices and the hard work of Bengal coach Arun Lal. According to him, the effort of the coach must not be undermined in the success of the current Bengal team, and Porel's improvement as a bowler.

Bengal Coach Arun Lal recently said about Porel:

"He's in great form at the moment. He's bowling deliveries that can get big batsmen out, like a KL Rahul, or a Virat Kohli."

"If you look at Arun Lal Sir's career, it is nothing but inspiring. After an amazing cricket career over the years, he achieved the same success in a coaching role, and became a household name as a commentator. He even battled cancer and came out fighting. So any words coming from his side are extremely encouraging. People like Rahul and Virat Kohli are world-class batsman, and it will be a dream come true if I get their wickets," told the pacer.

Rapid Fire

Mitchell Starc, Cummins or Jasprit Bumrah?

Pat Cummins.

Favourite Bengali cricketer apart from Sourav Ganguly?

Wriddhiman Saha.

Cricket Idol/Idols while growing up?

Brett Lee and Dale Steyn.

Favourite footballer?

Lionel Messi.

What is Ishan Porel up to during this home quarantine?

Fitness, household chores and family time.