'It will sink in slowly, it is a special moment' - Arshdeep Singh after receiving maiden national call-up

Ecstatic after earning his maiden national call-up, left-arm pacer Arshdeep Singh has opened up about and said that bowling to the powerful Punjab Kings hitters in the nets helped him sharpen his ability to bowl yorkers. Arshdeep was impressive with his death-bowling skills throughout the season and ended his campaign scalping 10 wickets at an economy of 7.70.

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), on May 22, announced a balanced squad for the upcoming home series against South Africa, with maiden call-ups for Arshdeep Singh and Umran Malik while Dinesh Karthik and Hardik Pandya were also included after impressing with their brilliant comeback at the IPL this season.

“I got to know just before the match, in the bus that I have got selected for the Indian team. Because the match was going on I didn’t feel much. It will sink in slowly. It is a special moment. I feel lucky and grateful and would like to continue like this,” Arshdeep was quoted by NDTV Sports.

Credit goes to PBKS management: Arshdeep Singh

Arshdeep had toured Sri Lanka with the Indian side last year as a net bowler and was the only player alongside skipper Mayank Agarwal to be retained by his franchise ahead of the IPL 2022 auction. He worked with some of the finest batters in his team like Shikhar Dhawan, Liam Livingstone, and Jonny Bairstow to name a few during the tournament this year.

“Credit goes to management. They got such batters in the team that the only option to stop them in the nets was by bowling yorkers. And that improved my ability to bowl yorkers,” said Arshdeep.

The KL Rahul-led Indian team will host the Proteas for a five-match T20I series starting June 9. The team will see plenty of fresh faces as many of the senior members like Rohit Sharma, Jasprit Bumrah and Virat Kohli have been rested, while the youngsters who impressed in the IPL have been given an opportunity.