Sunrisers Hyderabad pacer Umran Malik seems to be in line to earn his maiden India call-up for the forthcoming bilateral series against South Africa in June. A member of the BCCI selection committee has confirmed that Umran is on the selectors’ radar. The pacer from J&K has impressed everyone with his fiery pace in the IPL.
Umran’s ability to bowl over 150 kph has made him a hot property in the Indian cricketing spectrum.
Sunrisers Hyderabad pacer Umran Malik has been the talk of the town in the Indian Premier League (IPL), with experts and fans backing him to get the India cap soon. As things stand Umran could be in line for his India debut as early as the South Africa series.
The Indian cricket team is set to take on the Proteas in a bilateral assignment in June, after the completion of the 15th edition of the IPL. As per a report in Insidesport, a member of the selection committee has confirmed that Umran is on the selectors’ radar.
“How often do you get a bowler in India bowling at 150kph+ consistently? He is a rare talent and is definitely on our radar. Of course, his name is being considered for India so that he can be groomed,” a member of the selection committee told the portal.
Over the past few weeks, a number of cricketing personalities have rallied behind Umran’s case for national selection. Kevin Pietersen even said that Malik should be playing Test cricket for India as no one wants to face the kind of pace the J&K lad has the ability to bowl.
“Just have a look at some of the great sides, some of the great Australian sides that we’ve played against, [they had] the Brett Lees, the Mitchell Johnsons. This guy is a Test bowler, no one likes to face this pace,” Kevin Pietersen said after SRH’s match against Gujarat Titans in the IPL.
“Look at those figures, 5-25, the best figures in this year’s IPL. You can bowl him for an over, bowl him for two overs, bowl him for three overs. Let him run in, bowl around him. Build your fast-bowling around him,” he added.
Umran is one of the top wicket-takers in the league with a whopping 15 scalps to his name. His 5-for against Gujarat in the last outing was his maiden 5-wicket-haul in the IPL. The pacer from J&K, who can consistently touch the 150 kph mark, is eager to further increase his pace and go beyond 155 kph mark some day.
