Umran’s biggest advantage is his pace, Problem is his skill: RP Singh on Umran’s ODI career
“He concedes run, that remains the biggest worry. So, the Indian team needs to know how and when to use him,” RP Singh said.
There is no doubt that Umran Malik is the kind of player who can serve India for a long time and has a bright future ahead. He has something that everyone thrives for but only some have it i.e., pace. He is the kind of bowler who can easily touch the 150 KPH barrier something which is not a common sight in Indian cricket. Yes, one might argue that India has seen a bowler in Varun Aaron who bowled with sheer pace. But as has been the problem with Indian cricket we have not been able to take care of our fast bowlers who genuinely bowl fast and all we are left with are medium pacers who bowled in mid 130s
The Rise
Umran Malik came into the limelight in IPL 2021 where he came in as a replacement for T Natrajan who tested positive for COVID-19. Umran impressed everyone with his ability to bowl quick and was retained by SRH in IPL 2022. He continued the good work under the guidance of Dayle Satyen and picked up a five-wicket haul against Gujrat Titans. An impressive show in the IPL earned him a place in India’s squad for the T20I series against Ireland that year. Although his returns have been decent in the chances that he has got so far, the fast bowler hasn’t been able to deliver an eye-catching performance at the international level.
The Problem
Many experts believe that Umran has to add more skills to his bowling along with pace to be successful at the highest level, especially in the ODI format. Former Indian pacer RP Singh said “ I will still say, his biggest advantage is his pace, the problem is the skill. The (ball) movement isn’t much right now, and planning the game (needs to improve). You also have to set batters up. He hasn’t learnt that as quickly as he should have. He concedes run, that remains the biggest worry. So, the Indian team needs to know how and when to use him”. Interestingly Umran Malik is a part of India’s world cup plans by the looks of it as he has been given a consistent run in the last year. With the world cup just a few months away Umran needs to work on his bowling to get a place in the eleven
