Glenn McGrath, back here for another stint at the MRF Pace Foundation, was pleased with the progress made by the young seamers.
The Aussie legend said here on Monday, “The boys from MRF have been doing well. This year we have had Basil Thampi, Kamlesh Nagarkoti, K.M. Asif, Khaleel Ahmed, Ankit Rajpoot, Aniket Chowdhary and Avesh Khan picked up by the IPL franchises.”
McGrath added, “And during the season, Basil Thampi was selected in the Indian team and Rajpoot and Chowdhary played for India ‘A’. The hard work put in by head coach M. Senthilnathan and the boys has paid off.”
Talking about the performances of the Indian pacemen in South Africa, McGrath said, “If you are able to get 20 wickets in a Test, you give your team a good chance of winning. India has a good attack in Mohammed Shami, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Jasprit Bumrah and Hardik Pandya.”
READ: Nagarkoti to work with McGrath ahead of the IPL
About Bumrah’s selection for Tests, McGrath opined, “He bowls with a lot of control in the one-dayers and the Twenty20 games. If you have that quality, you will do well in Tests too.”
On the small-made under-19 lad Nagarkoti being able to generate so much pace, McGrath said, “Bowling with speed is a lot about good rhythm, powering through to the crease, good wrists, good action. You don’t have to be a body builder to bowl fast.”
McGrath felt India had a reasonable chance to win the Test series in England the coming summer. “India definitely has an opportunity but it depends on how well the players adapt to the English conditions.”
Talking about Australia’s emphatic win in the Ashes, McGrath said, “I think the bowling combination of Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlwood, Pat Cummins and Nathan Lyon was brilliant. Their successes with the ball gave confidence to the batsmen. The bowling attack led the team.”
ALSO READ: 'I gave Sachin a little sledge and he got back at me'
On some players picking one-day and Twenty20 cricket over Tests, McGrath observed, “It is an individual decision. Not all cricketers are suited for the longer formats. And not all countries pay their cricketers as well as Australia, India and England does for playing for the country.”
He said Test cricket, still producing quality fare, would survive, and added day\night games was a good avenue to bring in the crowds. “In Australia, day\night Tests are popular, we have had the pitch and the ball worked out.”
McGrath emphasised young pacemen should not lose their path and focus, and said, “Nathu Singh was a big buy in the IPL not so long ago, then he lost direction, forgot us and drifted away. Now, he is back with us and willing to put in the hard yards.”
Asked about the spat between David Warner and Quinton de Kock in the recent Australia-South Africa Test, McGrath said he did not have enough information on the incident.
Comments
SHARE