What’s the story?
Former Indian fast bowler Zaheer Khan is keen to help the present and upcoming crop of fast bowlers in an official capacity, stating his desire to become the bowling coach of the Indian cricket team in the future.
“I haven’t really planned that far ahead. But in terms of keenness, yes, the keenness is there,” Zaheer said on the bowling coach role. “It is something that I have done throughout my playing career also. If there is someone who wants my advice, I have always been there for them.”
Zaheer, who is set to do commentary in the upcoming ICC Champions Trophy in England, feels that though India have a talented quartet of pace bowlers in the likes of Bhuvaneshwar Kumar, Jasprit Bumrah, Umesh Yadav and Mohammad Shami in their 15-man squad, it will be the batting line-up that decides whether Virat Kohli’s side can defend the title they won in 2013.
“With the new rules and fielding restrictions, it is important that you have bowlers who are good enough to bowl in any situation. That’s definitely one thing that goes in India’s favour right now,” he said. “But in the end, you have got to approach it as a bowling unit that you have to pick up a few early wickets. Batting has always been our strength, and in these conditions, it becomes even more important that the batting line-up delivers.”
In case you didn’t know....
With 311 Test and 282 ODI wickets to his name, Zaheer is one of India’s most successful bowlers in history and was a key member of the 2011 ICC World Cup winning side under MS Dhoni.
He has been instrumental in helping India mould a good crop of young fast bowlers and has earned praise for his work with the Delhi Daredevils IPL side as a mentor and skipper.
Extra Cover: Zaheer Khan gets engaged to actress Sagarika Ghatge
The details
On the field, the Indian side have had an ideal preparation for the Champions Trophy with convincing victories over New Zealand and Bangladesh boosting their confidence ahead of their first group game against arch-rivals Pakistan on Sunday.
However, off the field, things have been rather unpleasant with the BCCI planning to replace Anil Kumble who is reportedly not on the same wavelength as the players, especially skipper Virat Kohli.
While Zaheer didn’t make any comments with regards to the head coach role, he did express his desire to take up the role of the bowling coach sometime in the future. As for the upcoming Champions Trophy, Zaheer advised the Indian pacers to be brave and pitch the ball up to the batsmen if they wanted to take wickets in the English conditions.
The 38-year-old feels that 300 has become a par score in ODIs at the moment and wants the Indian batsmen to take their time to settle in before unleashing the attack on the opposition bowlers.
Watch: One of Zaheer’s best overs!
What’s next?
The 2017 Champions Trophy gets underway on Thursday with hosts and pre-tournament favourites England taking on Bangladesh in the opener at The Oval. As stated earlier, India play their first match on Sunday against Pakistan and will then take on Sri Lanka before finishing their group fixtures against South Africa.
Author’s take
With vast international experience behind him, Zaheer Khan seems ideal for the Indian bowling coach role with his calm demeanor making him a very approachable figure. Former teammate Harbhajan Singh has already offered his backing in this regard and it only seems a matter of time before Zak is handed the role.
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