Consistent Line and length is my mantra says Sharma

Rahul Sharma made quite an impression during the fourth one-dayer at Indore, grabbing three wickets in as many overs to wreck the West Indian line-up. But the leg-spinner wasn’t ready to read too much into his debut, and the comparisons he elicited with Shane Warne for his sharp-spinning leg-break that dismisssed Danza Hyatt.

Rahul Sharma on his Wicket taking spell against West Indies

“I don’t know much about those comparisons. I saw Warne’s ball in the net. My leg-break went through the legs of Hyatt. I have spoken to Anil Kumble and Eric Simmons, who told me to focus on maintaining good line and length. Big turn looks cute on TV, but batsmen can leave it easily. It will be tough for batsmen if I maintain correct line and length. Variations are important.”

On his effort at Indore, Rahul said, “The basic principle of bowling in one-dayers is to maintain a wicket-to-wicket line, and allow not much freedom for batsmen. I was just doing that in Indore.” 

Rahul has been a part of the Indian squad from the beginning of the series against the West Indies, but had to wait till the fag end to get a chance to be in the final eleven. So, has it been frustrating for him? “I have been playing cricket for the last 10 years. So I just needed to keep myself ready to play. I have been a part of the team for sometime now, and that was really helpful. Dhoni and Sehwag supported me a lot, and had told me to keep my patience and be ready to play whenever my chance comes,” he said.

Bowling with off-spinner R Ashwin, Rahul said, was a good learning experience for him. “It’s very helpful to bowl with Ashwin. He has bowled very well in all formats, and also quite an experienced bowler in domestic circuit. It’s a good learning experience for me.”

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