Amid the brilliance of the two spin all-rounders in India’s emphatic 280-run win against Bangladesh, where Ravichandran Ashwin scored a century and picked up a five-wicket haul in the second innings, while Ravindra Jadeja snared five wickets and scored a fifty in Chennai, former Pakistan cricketer Basit Ali reserved special praise for the pace unit, whom he compared to the iconic trio of Wasim Akram, Shoaib Akhtar, and Waqar Younis.
Of the 20 Bangladesh wickets that fell across the four days of action at the MA Chidambaram Stadium, the spinners picked 11 wickets. The remaining nine were picked up by the fast bowlers. Jasprit Bumrah ran riot in the first innings, where the pitch was more conducive for the seamers, finishing with 4 for 50 after Akash Deep picked two quick wickets with the new ball, while Mohammed Siraj, who also had two wickets to his name, relied on his consistency to cause trouble.
Speaking on his YouTube channel, Basit said that the Indian pace unit, who are without the services of Mohammed Shami as the senior cricketer remains in rehabilitation, is an impactful as the combination Akram, Waqar and Akhtar.
“The Indian bowling unit is so impactful that they are on the level with pacers Wasim Akram, Shoaib Akhtar, and Waqar Younis. Right now, Mohammed Shami is not playing,” he said.
BCCI sent ‘dangerous’ tip for Australia Tests
Amid the performance of the aforementioned three fast bowlers, Shami awaiting his return, and Yash Dayal, part of the Test squad for the Bangladesh series, hoping to make his debut, India have a few more pace options waiting in the wings, as seen through their performances in the recently-concluded Duleep Trophy. The likes of Arshdeep Singh, Khaleel Ahmed, Mukesh Kumar, Harshit Rana were all impressive in the domestic tournament.
However, Basit reiterated his earlier statement as he again urged the Ajit Agarkar-led selection committee to bring Mayank Yadav into the Test fold.
“Mayank Yadav’s ball is very dangerous. His bouncer is accurate. I wish to see him play a Test match in Australia,” Basit added.
The Delhi fast bowler became a sensation earlier in IPL 2024, where he featured for Lucknow Super Giants. The young seamer clocked 156.7 kph against Royal Challengers Bengaluru and bowled the fastest delivery of IPL 2024 and the fourth fastest in the tournament’s history.
However, with Mayank continuing to recover from the injury he incurred during the IPL, he missed the Duleep Trophy, with BCCI yet to give an update on his participation in the Ranji Trophy.
