WI vs IND: India bowling coach Paras Mhambre happy with Mukesh Kumar’s progress in debut tour
India are set to take on West Indies in the final 2 T20Is of the series in Florida USA. The conditions are expected to be a little more batting-friendly in the USA as opposed to the Caribbean pitches. Speaking in the pre-match press conference, India bowling coach Paras Mhambre has lauded the progress of pacer Mukesh Kumar.
“Very happy with the way he has progressed; the thought process, the discussion we had with him and his approach towards the game is fabulous,” Mhambre said ahead of the 4th T20I match.
The Bengal and Delhi Capitals pacer has impressed in the West Indies tour, and has picked up wickets in all formats of the game. His impressive debut means that he will be in the running as one of the back-up pacers for the ODI World Cup 2023, set to be played in India in the months of October and November.
“You need someone like him to come here on a tour and play against tough opponents on a different wicket which is never easy. But the way he has gone about it and the character he has shown (makes us) extremely happy,” he further added.
Mukesh has been terrific in domestic cricket for a while now. He played for Delhi Capitals in the Indian Premier League 2023 and was fast-tracked into the Indian team due to the absence of Mohammed Shami and Jasprit Bumrah in the West Indies tour.
“Going forward, since we know he is capable of playing all three formats, we need to be smart with his workload management. He has played a lot of domestic cricket and got quality skills out there,” Mhambrey said on Friday.
Compared to the slow wickets in the Caribbean, the bowling coach is expecting good batting tracks in the mainland United States.
“It is a little bit different with the black soil. The kind of soil we get in north of India. It is going to be a good wicket to bat on. The ball will come on to the bat. That is what we saw in the nets. Looks like it is going to be a high-scoring game,” he reckoned.
India still trail the West Indies 1-2 in the five-match series but Mhambrey remains confident about his team’s chances.
“I’m extremely happy with the way we fought back (in the third T20). In the first two games, I don’t think (we) were too far behind. We had the opportunities but unfortunately, we couldn’t seize them,” he further added.
