JOIN USFormer India seamer and bowling coach Venkatesh Prasad wants the struggling pace trio of Umesh Yadav, Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Mohammed Shami to concentrate on bowling “stump-to-stump” without trying too many variations in upcoming Cricket World Cup, starting February 14.
India will open their campaign against arch-rivals Pakistan at Adelaide on Feb 15.
“You just have to bowl stump-to-stump. There is no need to try anything extraordinary. In the shorter format, you just got to keep it tight and not give any width to the batsmen. That is the consistency our bowlers need to develop,” Prasad added.
Prasad, who has played in two ODI World Cups in 1996 and 1999 and the bowling coach during India’s victorious World T20 campaign in 2007, is a bit worried about team’s form.
“To a certain extent, yes,” he answered.
“Having said that, the boys have got a gap for about two weeks. They have got the time to fix the flaws detected during the Australia tour. They might not have done well so far but World Cup is a new beginning.
“Just one win in a high intensity game against Pakistan, would give their morale a huge boost for the subsequent games,” said Prasad, who himself played stellar role in tormenting Pakistan in the two editions (1996 and 1999) that he played in.
His animated send-off of Pakistan opener Aamir Sohail during 1996 Bangalore quarterfinal is a part of Indo-Pak cricketing folklore as much as his brilliant spell of swing bowling on a cool Old Trafford afternoon in 1999.
Talking more about the frenzied build-up for an Indo-Pak World Cup match, Prasad says it amazes him to to this day the kind of impact a cricket match is capable of creating in the minds of countless fans. “I was working out in the gym yesterday and there I overheard people talking about the 1996 quarterfinal. As players, we want to win every match but when you win against Pakistan, you realise what it means to the Indian fans,” he said.
His former rivals across the border including Inzamam-ul-Haq have begun with barrage of verbal volleys, saying there will be more pressure on India than Pakistan as they aim to maintain their 100 percent win record.
Prasad doesn’t agree with them. “This Indian team handles the pressure really well. They know what pressure is all about. In the end, you just focus on the process and perform in all departments and back yourself.