With Shami, Yadav, Bumrah and Kumar, Indian new ball attack is best in Champions Trophy
When was the last time India had so much variety in their fast bowling arsenal? If one goes in the flashback, there would not be any satisfactory answers.
The fast bowling group that defending champions India has taken to England for the ICC Champions Trophy is every team's envy. Including the neighbouring Pakistan that was once known to produce best seamers.
From the new ball bowler Mohammed Shami to death over specialist Jasprit Bumrah the Indian fast bowling arsenal is one that can fill a fan with pride.
The Virat Kohli-outfit has a fast bowler for every condition and situation that the host country and tournament can throw up.
Take the case of Shami. He can operate with the new ball well. He can swing and seam as well as extract good bounce from the length which can trouble any good batsman. His performance against New Zealand in the warm-up tie at the Kennington Oval, where he took top three wickets, makes him favourites to make the XI against Pakistan.
If Shami is deceptive, Bhuvneshwar Kumar's presence makes the Indian line-up dangerous especially given the conditions in England.
The Uttar Pradesh cricketer is arguably the best swing bowler in world cricket at the moment. He moves the ball well and also swings it both ways. These conditions are perfect for him as he likes to bowl it full, which will help him extract big swing.
Kumar has also mastered the art of bowling in the death with his dangerous toe crushers. It is not for nothing that the seamer has gone home with purple cap twice in the Indian Premier League in back-to-back seasons.
Umesh Yadav's pace and the newly-acquired accuracy adds sting to India's already bulked up new ball attack. The Vidarbha pacer has improved big time in the last couple of years. Unlike ealrier, Yadav has control over his pace, line and length. He becomes more dangerous once the ball gets older.
Then comes Bumrah. Is there any bowler who is as good at the death in world cricket? His ability to bowl both at 140kmph pace and the slower ones with the same action only makes him difficult to score of in the slog overs. He is tougher to deal with when the opposition is chasing.
And then comes the seaming all-rounder Hardik Pandya and his presence shows depth in India's pool of talent. The Baroda pacer might not be up to the level of the other four seamers, but he can certainly add value to the team with his all-round skills.
Many former cricketers believe it is one of the best pace bowling line-up that India has. And former India cricketer Vijay Dahiya is one of them.
"The current Indian team is blessed to have four quality limited overs bowler. My new ball choice would be Shami and Bhuvneshwar. Jasprit is fantastic as one change as he has great control with the semi-new ball (considering two new balls used)," Dahiya told PTI on Sunday.
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