Quotes of All Topics . Occasions . Authors
People forget that I have grown up playing on Indian tracks and have bowled huge number of overs on unresponsive Indian tracks.
It's true that I have got wickets with the new ball in Test matches, but that doesn't mean that I can't bowl with the old ball.
We all know just bowling won't do in modern international cricket, and we have to contribute with the bat and as a fielder, too.
If the keeper is standing up, in the fear of getting stumped, the batsman will not try to walk down the wicket to negate the swing.
When you create pressure in the previous over for your partner to strike, it is sometimes as satisfying as picking up a wicket yourself.
I won't say I am a premier bowler or anything, because we are all trying to work hard, and whoever gets the opportunity wants to do well.
I don't bowl at 140 kmph or 150 kmph, so my best chance of getting the batsmen out is by bowling in the right areas and getting it to swing.
I am here to play cricket. No preferences at all. T20, ODI, Test - I just want to perform on every stage and prove my worth as a good bowler.
In India, the wicket tends to get a bit slower once the ball gets old, but in England, it's pretty much the same whether it's new ball or old ball.
It's all about doing the little things right. It doesn't matter what form of cricket you are playing. Just keep things simple, and you will succeed.
I'm a sports lover. Not just cricket - I play badminton and football, too. When I get some time off, I prefer to play sports rather than working out.
You see teams buy a lot of batsmen for a lot of money because they are good batsmen. But you also need good bowlers to get them out or contain the runs.
Almost every bowler bowls a slower ball, but not many can be deceptive. A slower ball can only be deceptive if it is different, if it is floating, swinging.
I think in T20, things are related to pressure, and if you handle it well, you are on top of your game. I think about process and not too much about results.
IPL is such a tournament that you end up knowing about the strengths and weaknesses of everyone because you are playing with so many people in the same side.
Shankar Basu introduced me to a different type of training that eventually helped me increase my pace. That, in turn, went on to help me bowl at the death, too.
When you are bowling with a new ball, there are only two fielders outside the circle. With the old ball, batsmen don't care how many guys are outside the circle.
The first thing that comes to the mind when you are touring South Africa is bouncy wickets. But that is no surety of what kind of pitch you would get in the game.
In my mind, I work out situations. Like, how I should play if I bat for four overs, or how should I approach myself if its 10 overs. These are things I work at the nets.
There has definitely been an improvement in my bowling in terms of pace and variations like the slower ball and knuckle-ball. To add to that, I have improved fitness-wise.
You need to plan your bowling. Whenever things are not working for you - like, if you don't get swing - then you have to be ready with a backup plan and try something else.
I only have a family pack; never really felt the need for abs or something like that because, to my mind, being fit in terms of cricket is far more important than anything.
Whatever knuckle ball I have bowled, I wanted batsmen to go after that. That way, you can get wickets, and that's one of the main reasons why I have been successful in power plays.
I used to bowl a lot at the death while bowling in the IPL, but it serves as a confidence booster that I can do a lot more with the ball at the start of the innings and at the death.
When I started out, I wasn't a thinking bowler, but talking to seniors and coaches helped. They would always tell me that I ought to be clear about where I wanted to bowl before I ran in to bowl.
You need wickets to be brave. When you get wickets, you can try anything. But when you don't, you always hesitate to try a few things because it is not always about giving runs and getting wickets.
I never think that I have to be at top every time. Obviously, I have to do well in every game and series; that's what I try to do. I try to improve and work on the swing and variation in my bowling.
I don't run after speed. Obviously, it will be better to have some more pace, but I am very well aware that I can't bowl with the speed of 150 kmph. I am working hard on my technique and variations.
Bumrah has a different action, which creates problems for the batsmen. He has improved a lot of things with his action. He had these yorkers, and slower ones earlier as well, but he has improved a lot.
When I started playing cricket, I knew that my physique is not at all like a typical fast bowler. My body language is also different, and I am not aggressive by nature; thus, my focus was always on my skills.
I have always said the most difficult batsman to bowl against is the man who is in form. You may have seen the best batsmen get out early when they are not in form, but an in-form batsman is difficult to dismiss.
I never thought in my dreams that I would score fifty in One-dayers: not fifty but match-winning knock because One-Day is a kind of format which doesn't suit my batting, as I am not the kind of batsman who can hit big sixes.
When I began, I was more of a swing bowler with little pace, but I realized it will be difficult to sustain without the pace, so my fitness has now allowed me maybe an extra yard of pace. That has been the secret of my success.
As a bowler, there are times when you do not get wickets, and you don't have the numbers to show against your name. But never has the thought crossed my mind that I am not a confident bowler and the wickets are not coming my way.
As a bowler, you want to go and bowl in helpful conditions in South Africa, England, and Australia. But it is also important to bowl in the right areas, and they differ from bowler to bowler, depending on conditions and the opposition.
In the IPL, I learnt from Dale Steyn. Our bowling styles are quite different, but he is a great bowler, and you can always pick something from the way he bowls. He has given me a lot of tips during matches, which I have tried in my bowling.
When you are playing Under-17 or U-19, the captain is of the same age as the rest of us. His knowledge was also as limited as the other players, so there was greater responsibility on the bowlers to understand themselves and their bowling, read the pitch, and set fields accordingly.
When I was a youngster, Praveen Kumar was in the same club as me, and because we are similar bowlers, I learnt a lot from him. We used to have conversations, but not a lot. What was very helpful was observing what he was bowling, the kind of fields he had, and what his thinking was.
T20 is such a format that finishes quickly, and you only have four overs. If there are three bad balls in one over, you will go for runs, and your whole analysis suffers. The team is on back foot because of three balls. So each and every ball becomes very important. It makes the bowler think.
As to adding variations to my white ball bowling, ever since I started playing IPL, I realised you need variations. You can't survive on line and length. You need coaches around you who can guide you to get there. I have been lucky that I have had seniors and coaches who have helped me get there.