2,000 Bowlers Show Up For Mumbai Cricket Association Trials at Wankhede

There was a time when fast bowlers in India were a scarce resource; however, this is not the case anymore as the Indian pace battery has gained pace and the skill to challenge any batting line-up in the world. But the hunt for upcoming fast bowlers does not seem to be ending soon. In a talent hunt organized by the Mumbai Cricket Association, around 2,000 bowlers belonging to the under-19 and under-23 category showed up at the Wankhede stadium for the trial.

Former Indian fast bowler, Balwinder Singh Sandhu is now at the helms of schemes of finding out new prospering bowling talents and was also present at the venue to spot the out and out fast bowlers. Sandhu, 61 spoke about the kind of talent he and other coaches were looking for:

“Bowling action, pace and swing. If someone has pace then the action doesn’t matter, because it can be corrected since they are raw. I looked for a spark. If someone has that spark, he can be groomed. At the end of the day, it depends on how well a bowler uses the inputs and information he receives from coaches.” 

The spin department was handled by former Indian and Mumbai spinner, Ramesh Powar. Fellow spin bowling coaches accompanied Powar who has 470 first-class wickets to his name. Powar said he looked at, “talent plus adaptability” among the spinners.

MCA’s Cricket Improvement Committee chairman and managing committee member Pravin Amre said that such talent hunts will help and boost Mumbai’s bowling stock. He said:

“We never expected such a good response. However, this is raw talent and we all need to be patient.”

The trials will continue until January 20 across different venues.