Young Indian pacer Umran Malik impressed everyone with his speed in the second leg of Indian Premier League. The 21-year-old consistently clocked 150kmph, leaving a lasting impact on the fans and pundits.
Former Pakistan opener Salman Butt is also among the ones who have been dazzled with the 21-year-old soaring pace and he reckons he could be India's x-factor leading to next T20 World Cup, which will be played in Australia, renowned for assisting the pacers.
Butt feels that getting a ticket into the Indian team will require the youngster to perform well in South Africa as he is named in India's A squad for the upcoming tour.
"Umran Malik can be included in the Indian team soon if he does well in South Africa during the A tour. He has extra pace, which is something unique in Indian cricket. He consistently bowls at 150 kph. If he can carry on maintaining the speed, he will hold a special status. If he does well (in South Africa), I am sure he will be picked soon in the national team,” the former Pakistan cricketer said on his YouTube channel.
{{/usCountry}}"Umran Malik can be included in the Indian team soon if he does well in South Africa during the A tour. He has extra pace, which is something unique in Indian cricket. He consistently bowls at 150 kph. If he can carry on maintaining the speed, he will hold a special status. If he does well (in South Africa), I am sure he will be picked soon in the national team,” the former Pakistan cricketer said on his YouTube channel.
{{/usCountry}}Butt also feels that India need a good set of players to do well on Australian soil and with ten months still remaining in the competition, they can try out a number of youngsters, starting from the final T20I match against New Zealand, which will be played at Eden Gardens, Kolkata.
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“The next World Cup is in Australia and India will need additional options for that event. India have a number of youngsters who can be tried out over the next 10 months. Few of them can play in the last T20I (against New Zealand). They have won the series, so it is a perfect opportunity to try them out.”
India under new coach Rahul Dravid and captain Rohit Sharma have so far put on a strong show against the Black Caps, beating them in consecutive matches and taking an unassailable 2-0 lead in the three-match series.