Akash Deep was in fine form in the first Test match against Bangladesh, as India cruised to a 280-run win in Chennai. The pacer took two wickets in the first innings, playing a key role as the hosts took a 1-0 lead. The second and final Test is scheduled to begin on Friday in Kanpur, and the spotlight will once again be on him.
Having made his debut earlier in February this year, the 27-year-old will look to replicate his form in the second Test, that is if he is included in the playing XI.
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What did Zaheer Khan say?
Speaking to Cricbuzz, former India cricketer Zaheer Khan sent his support to the Bihar native, and felt that he deserved to be included in the upcoming Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Australia.
"There is no doubt about that. If you look at the Indian team's playing XI and there are talks about three seamers, Akash Deep is the third. So obviously when we talk about Australia, about that tour, we could see Akash Deep part of the team," he said.
Lauding his skills, the legendary pacer added, "Like how Siraj approaches it. He attacks the stump a lot fourth stump, off stump. The more deliveries you put around that on good length consistently, and it is important in Test match level. Akash Deep has all of that and he showed he has that aggression needed for a pacer. He has good potential and if he gets chances, his self-belief will increase and he will contribute to the team."
{{/usCountry}}Lauding his skills, the legendary pacer added, "Like how Siraj approaches it. He attacks the stump a lot fourth stump, off stump. The more deliveries you put around that on good length consistently, and it is important in Test match level. Akash Deep has all of that and he showed he has that aggression needed for a pacer. He has good potential and if he gets chances, his self-belief will increase and he will contribute to the team."
{{/usCountry}}On Wednesday, Akash Deep revealed that he wasn't in good form in the Test match against England. But he was able to focus on his game plan in the Chennai Test, right from the first delivery. He revealed that he kept on bowling on the off stump consistently to make it hard for opposition batters.
He also revealed that he wasn't under any kind of pressure to make it to the Australia Tour team. He also mentioned that he was left in awe of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli's training and level of playing.