This is the best I have seen Ishant Sharma bowl in a long time: VVS Laxman

Ishant Sharma has been one of India’s gun bowlers in their ongoing five-match Test series against England. The Delhi-born pacer is currently the visiting team’s leading wicket-taker with 11 wickets from three matches at Edgbaston, Lord’s and Trent Bridge respectively. He picked up an awe-inspiring five-wicket haul in the opening Test in Birmingham that unfortunately went in vain.

Thereafter, the 29-year-old failed to deliver at the Home of Cricket but picked up four vital top-order wickets in Nottingham. Prior to the Test series, he plied his trade for Sussex in Division One of the County Championship under the tutelage of former Australian fast bowler Jason Gillespie. He notched 15 wickets in four contests and seemed to have found his rhythm back.

No praise can be too high for the bowling group

Along with him, the other seamers, including Jasprit Bumrah and Hardik Pandya, both of whom picked up a fifer at Trent Bridge, were also impressive Recently, VVS Laxman, the former Indian batsman, showered the speedsters with praises and moreover, put forth the technical aspects of Ishant’s bowling in his exclusive column for The Times of India (TOI).

“No praise can be too high for the bowling group. Jasprit Bumrah’s return has lent a new dimension, but no less noteworthy is the consistency with which Ishant is landing the ball. He has worked very hard on getting his wrist upright, which allows him to bowl fuller and get the ball to swing, or move on pitching when it lands on the seam. This is the best I have seen him bowl in a long time,” he mentioned.

The slip catching was a tad disappointing in the first two matches, but the likes of KL Rahul turned out to be safe as houses in the previous encounter. Laxman reckons India have found the personnel to patrol the slip cordon. The Hyderabad-born cricketer was also awestruck by Rishabh Pant’s abilities with wicketkeeping gloves.

“The other pleasing aspect of India’s cricket was their close-in catching, with Rahul leading the way. India seem to have found the right personnel to man the slip cordon, and they should stick with these players so that there is a settled feel. I was also impressed with Rishabh Pant’s glovework and his temperament on debut,” the 43-year-old added.

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