India vs West Indies: India’s pace renaissance has lot to do with how bowlers have been handled by Kohli: L Balaji

Ind vs WI: For Indian fans, batting is an art, it has always occupied the upper echelons of emotions. Bowlers, for all their worth, have remained sidekicks, but Balaji believes things are changing and Indian cricket, after taking an elongated nap, is waking up to realise the worth of bowlers.

When Jasprit Bumrah knocked over John Campbell with a searing in-swinger, West Indian legend Andy Roberts nodded in agreement. Curtly Ambrose spoke about how he reminded him of his own era, those towering fast bowlers. There is an aura to Bumrah and the way he trots up to his bowling mark. In 11 Tests, he has galloped away to the number 7 position in Test cricket and for all the accolades Indian batting tends to get, Bumrah has made fast bowling sexy in India, perhaps for the first time after Kapil Dev.

File image of Virat Kohli, Jasprit Bumrah (Getty Images)

So much has been said and written about Bumrah, so much has been dissected - from his action to his demeanour, that other actors in the play, the Ishants and the Shamis have taken a back step. However, as a group, Indian cricket is on the march and the bowlers are taking the lead.

“For me it is the best fast bowling attack as far as the balance is concerned and the kind of the exposure they have been getting. Also, all of them are different and bring different traits to the table which has led to a healthy competition in Indian cricket,” former India paceman Lakshmipathy Balaji told Hindustan Times, on why there has been a renaissance in Indian fast bowling.

Balaji, who has seen Indian cricket from close quarters understands the workload, the pain of running in all day and trying to extract a smidgen of response from dead tracks, tries to decipher what has worked for Jasprit Bumrah in the recent times.

“For instance, Bumrah - it has not taken him too long to rise through the ranks. Earlier, bowlers had to perform in first class cricket and go through the grind and after you know, all the injuries, by the time you come to the Indian team, there is already some amount of wear and tear. What has happened with the current crop, especially Bumrah, is that they have identified young talent and thrown them to the deep end of international cricket,” he added.

At a day and age when being frenetic is the new norm and jostling to find the right peg becomes a compulsion, managing players is an art - one that is being spoken a lot in Indian cricket. Virat Kohli keeps on saying about managing the workload and Balaji places a lot of importance to this particular aspect. He even believes that the reason why Indian cricket has found its groove in the recent past has a lot to do with the way the bowlers have found their peace.

“When you find a talent like Bumrah, it becomes imperative you protect the talent because he is a precious commodity. Hence, if he and the rest of the bowling group is looked after well for the next say 5 years, they will become a major reason why India will go on to win Test series in overseas conditions. And well, you can see how they have been instrumental in the recent times, so these are the signs of things to come,” the former Chennai Super Kings player said.

For Indian fans, batting is an art, it has always occupied the upper echelons of emotions. Bowlers, for all their worth, have remained sidekicks, but Balaji believes things are changing and Indian cricket, after taking an elongated nap, is waking up to realise the worth of bowlers.

“We have always produced world-class batsmen, but a team only wins Tests if the bowling attack is able to pick 20 wickets and in the recent past, these bowlers have taken a lot of load when it comes to stepping up and delivering on a consistent basis.”

“This attack is so similar to what West Indies used to have, or Pakistan and Australia - varied, consistent and menacing. They perform well not only in favourable conditions but also get the job done in home and in sub-continent conditions,” Balaji said.

The Indian team might falter, they might make mistakes, but there is a sense of bravado in the way they approach games. They stumble, yes, but quickly try to sprint again and this seeps down from the captain. From Virat Kohli and the way, he wants his players to respond. Hence, from beards to unmissable tattoos, the team has followed its skipper, but when things are seen in perspective, the captain has to be given credit for the way the bowlers have responded.

“Everything boils down to the captain and how he manages the personnel at his disposal and I give a lot of credit to the way Virat has managed and used his bowlers. You may get selected, you will be given chances, but well who handles the talent on the field needs to credited. All the bowlers have been managed superbly, they have been given enough rest,” Balaji concurred.

So when we speak about Virat Kohli, we have to speak about MS Dhoni. For what is Indian cricket, it has to be somewhere between the composure of Dhoni and the chutzpah of Kohli. And numbers reveal that under Dhoni, India’s bowling stagnated, and it has been rekindled under Kohli.

“Look Dhoni did not have the luxury of this kind of fast-bowling talent. He took over the mantle when the transition was taking place. Anil (Kumble) retired, Harbhajan was in the final lap. So yes, spinners developed under Dhoni, but fast bowlers have come up in the last 2 or 3 years,” Balaji said.

When Ravi Shastri was inducted as the head coach back in 2017, he spoke fondly about Bharat Arun and how he shares a rapport with the Indian players. Shastri is back for another stint as is Arun, and in many ways, it is just an extension of trust handed over to the duo, especially Arun. Balaji has seen Arun from close quarters, he knows the man and has nothing but lavish praise for India’s bowling coach.

“He has spent a lot of time with this group in the last five to six years -from the Under 19, to NCA, and then to Indian cricket team. He has seen a lot of young cricketers develop into international cricket. When he took over as bowling coach, he understood all about the bowlers and hence, the workload was managed superbly.”

“In the past, bowlers burst on to the scene but slowly fizzled away because they were not managed - injuries played a major role and this was a problem with Indian cricket for a long time in the past. This approach has seen a radical change in the present times and Bharat Arun needs to be credited for this approach. As a group, this management and this support staff have managed the players very well, and yes, one can safely say that this era belongs to Indian bowlers,” Balaji added.

So, when Bumrah jogs in, Ishant steams in and Shami sprints in, when Kohli pumps his fist all over the place and when Rishabh Pant shakes his hand after that red ball thudded into his gloves, Indian cricket can sit back and revel in the glory. It was long due, it has finally come knocking!