Indian teams have relied heavily on match practice in the last few years and Gautam Gambhir’s men are no different as they are selecting net bowlers with specialised skills to help their batsmen prepare for the Bangladesh series starting here on September 19.
One of the fast bowlers called for the four-day camp here is Punjab’s Gurnur Brar, who has played five first-class matches so far and was also with Punjab Kings during the Indian Premier League (IPL) last season. Although Gurnur’s first-class record is not good. But what has worked for this 24-year-old player is his six feet 4.5 inches tall height and his ability to bowl at a fast pace.
It is believed that Gurnoor has been called especially for the bowling action of Bangladesh fast bowler Nahid Rana, who recently took five wickets in the Test match against Pakistan in Rawalpindi. The specialty of Rana’s bowling is that due to his height of six feet five inches, he got bounce and in the second Test against Pakistan, he bowled in a straight line.
It is believed that in the presence of two excellent new ball bowlers Jaspreet Bumrah and Mohammad Siraj, India is unlikely to play on a ‘turning pitch’ and the Chepauk pitch may be such that both fast bowlers and spinners will get equal help. But there may be more bounce on it, so Bangladesh’s tall fast bowler Rana may also get a chance.
India’s new bowling coach Morne Morkel was seen giving advice on how to bowl to the star batsmen. Mumbai off-spinner Himanshu Singh was also a part of the nets. Tamil Nadu left-arm slow bowler S Ajith Ram also sweated it out in the nets. On the second day at the nets, fast bowlers Akash Deep and Yash Dayal bowled more than the main fast bowling pair of Bumrah and Siraj.
After a month’s break, the senior batsmen are now trying to get back into form. The Bangladesh team will arrive in Chennai on Sunday. There will be tight security for the guests coming just after the unrest in Bangladesh and the removal of former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina. In fact, the new head of the Bangladesh Cricket Board, Farooq Ahmed, told reporters in Dhaka last Thursday that BCCI (Board of Control for Cricket in India) secretary Jay Shah has assured him of the necessary security arrangements.
