Everyone loves a champion so when a new player arrives on the cricketing scene the question is asked, ‘Will he be a star?” Of course it’s too early to tell when a player has only a few games under their belt but for the 192 cm tall Ishant Sharma, the signs are all good.
Born in 1988, Sharma is still a boy but playing against men like Australian captain Ricky Ponting, the Indian quick has already made his mark. In the Perth Test in 2008, where the wicket is famous for its bounce and pace, Sharma had the Aussie skipper under real pressure and eventually got his wicket.
Sharma has a number of things going for him. His run-up is relaxed, he is blessed with natural pace – he is the first Indian bowler to be clocked at 150 kph – and his high delivery action means he gets good bounce and on a lively wicket can be intimidating. Recently in Sri Lanka, on a wicket dominated by the slower bowlers, Sharma proved his class by removing top order locals. The Indian keeper earned his money when behind the stumps to the tall quick.
Add to that his enthusiasm and desire to win and India has a budding champion on its books. Sharma’s passion to succeed was amply demonstrated in the Sydney Test in 2008 when India was battling to save the match. Sharma is not in the team for his batting but he fought tooth and nail to keep his wicket and was terribly disappointed when given out.
His fervour was on full display again when in that Down Under tour he had Andrew Symons clearly caught at the wicket only for the umpire to turn down his appeal. It’s a good sign when a bowler puts his heart into his bowling and is not afraid to wear that heart on his sleeve.
The sun-soaked pitches in India encourage the slower bowlers and spinners have been known to open an innings. And although India has produced some outstanding fast bowlers such as Kapil Dev and Javagal Srinath, it is rare to find such an exciting prospect as in Ishant Sharma.
He’s young, tall, quick, accurate, fiery and bursting with energy. His handful of games have been in different countries and his efforts have been well noted. With full fitness and more experience, India has a potentially brilliant fast bowler, who could well go on to be one of the greatest fast bowlers India has ever produced!
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