Former India bowling coach Bharat Arun has shared his views on India’s transition plans ahead of the upcoming series against New Zealand. He believes the team management needs to be patient while preparing the next generation of bowlers.
The selection of experienced pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar has raised questions about India’s plans for the future. However, India has been consistently giving chances to rookie bowlers like Mayank Yadav, Prince Yadav, Gurnoor Brar, Yash Thakur and Naman Dhir.
Arun said there will be some reason behind the Indian team’s idea of giving opportunities to so many young bowlers.
“Well, I really don’t know what’s happening behind closed doors in the selection committee and the team management. I think they must be having some plans in place. If they are trying out so many bowlers, they want to find out who is the one who’s going to be, who’s going to suit according to the team’s plans. So, I would like to wait and watch rather than making a comment on that,” Bharat Arun said in a select media interaction organised by Sony Sports Network.
The former bowling coach said India’s bowling is in good stead and the experimentation will help the team management in getting to know the bowlers’ weaknesses.
If you look at the overall Indian pace attack, it looks pretty healthy to me. It is just a question of the combination. When one bowler comes into the team, somebody experienced like Bumrah walks into the team, the whole bowling attack looks totally different. So, I think when they are trying out. Yes, it’s okay for a bowler to be hit. In sport, you are allowed to fail. But the failure, to me, is an investment to tell me how to reinvent myself. So if that is going to be the case, if the bowler is going to understand where he stands, and if he’s going to reinvent himself, I think that is great preparation for the big event. And I hope the team management is doing just that,” he elaborated further.
Arun added that the Indian selectors should pick veteran fast bowler Mohammed Shami on form.
“To answer what Shami should be doing, I don’t think Shami needs to prove himself. You either pick him on form or you don’t. Mohammed Shami does not need to prove that ‘I can do this to be picked into the Indian team’. He’s proved enough across all formats,” he said.
Shami has been picked in Bengal’s Ranji Trophy squad.
