Indian cricket has not just begun to enjoy an abundance of fast bowling options, several among them are left-armers, who were once rare in the domestic game.
Seldom has a single IPL season thrown up so many Indian left-arm quicks of such varied skills as this one.
Mohsin Khan is nippy with a deceptive slower ball while Mukesh Choudhary swings his way to powerplay wickets. If Yash Dayal controls the middle overs with sharp bouncers, Arshdeep Singh aces his yorkers at the death. Then there are the comeback artists—T Natarajan and Khaleel Ahmed.
Each bowler may be at different stages of development. But the national selectors would hope to identify the best among them for the immediate future with a World Cup around the corner, and keep an eye out on the others for the long-term. India have searched for a durable left-arm pacer since Zaheer Khan retired, to add variety to their potent pace attack, but only Jaydev Unadkat had come even to the fringes.
Two among them whose names went under the radar at the auction—Mohsin and Choudhary—enjoyed a super Sunday. The stand-out showing of 23-year-old Mohsin (4-0-16-4) won the day for Lucknow Super Giants against Delhi Capitals. In the evening, 25-year-old Mukesh Choudhary’s four-wicket haul for Chennai Super Kings stopped Sunrisers Hyderabad in their pursuit of their target of 203. The two share 19 wickets in 12 matches, handsome returns for players who were bought at their modest base price of ₹20 lakh.
“I played him (Mohsin) in the nets a month ago and then didn’t want to face him. He was sharp. At times, scary in the nets,” LSG captain KL Rahul gushed on Sunday. “It’s not just pace, he has a good brain and skill as well. He has a great slower one and knows when to use it.”
Mohsin was with Mumbai Indians for three years, but didn’t get to play as Kiwi left-armer Trent Boult was in the side. At LSG he is rated highly and has taken eight wickets including Sunday’s four-for.
“From the time, I began bowling when I was 9-10, I would not look for swing. I would always look to bowl fast,” Mohsin said. He is the second left-arm pacer from Uttar Pradesh, after Yash Dayal, to announce himself this season.
Mohsin hails from Sambhal while Dayal comes from Prayagraj. Dayal was called up as a reserve to the India team and had attracted a bidding war before going to Gujarat Titans for ₹3.2 crore. His razor-sharp bouncer that got Andre Russell ducking and would have resulted in his wicket but for his overstepping is an example of his efforts. He strikes every 13 balls (7 wickets) and delivers effective slower balls in the slog overs.
The most improved bowler among the lot is Punjab Kings’ Arshdeep Singh. He was one of only two players retained by the franchise before the auction and has vindicated that faith by controlling the proceedings in the death overs. Among those asked to line up against power-hitters at the death, Arshdeep stands out with an economy of 6.25, conceding only three fours. He would want to improve on his wickets tally though, having taken only three so far.
Mukesh Choudhary is making up for the absence of the injured Deepak Chahar in the powerplay overs—his eight wickets are the most by any bowler in that phase.
As for Sunrisers Hyderabad’s T Natarajan, Indian cricket would be egging him on to add more chapters to his fairyale cricket story. Having spent most of 2021 on the sidelines due to a troubled knee, he has swung back into contention with 17 wickets, already surpassing his productive 2020 IPL (16 wickets) that earned him the India cap. This year, Natarajan, with a remodelled run-up, has proved he is more than a yorker specialist.
Delhi Capitals’ Khaleel Ahmed has also regained some of his rhythm missing in the last two seasons, taking 11 wickets, and striking every 13 balls. He last played T20 and ODI cricket for India in 2019 and is on a comeback trail.
