Speed thrills. In cricket, the cautionary notes attached to this rippling kinetic energy is linked to stunned batters facing a steaming fast bowler. In Indian sport, with its tropes of oriental magic and surreal aesthetics, the willow game was often linked to wristy batters and wily spinners.
Within these stereotypes, an Indian fast bowler was deemed a rarity. But India always had its fast men right from the days of Amar Singh and Mohammad Nissar. And it continued through Kapil Dev, Javagal Srinath, Zaheer Khan and Ishant Sharma to the latest trio of Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Shami and Mohammed Siraj.
To be at the Wankhede Stadium on Thursday and witness the havoc wreaked by Bumrah, Siraj and Shami should be deemed a privilege. Welcome to the High Table of supreme fast bowling. In the world of ODIs with its intrinsic bias towards the batters, the bowling unit’s opening attack is all about prising wickets, restricting runs and peddling the odd bouncer.
