Delhi Capitals’ (DC) star domestic pick, Jammu & Kashmir’s Auqib Nabi Dar is still waiting to make his Indian Premier League (IPL) debut. While many had slotted Nabi in their DC playing XII, the team management has backed Mukesh Kumar as the new-ball bowler. The trust has paid off so far with Mukesh bagging crucial wickets and not going for plenty. Against Mumbai Indians (MI), he claimed the wickets of Ryan Rickelton and Tilak Varma in the same over. After DC’s comprehensive win over MI, Mukesh credited DC bowling coach Munaf Patel for advising him to bowl ‘Test lengths’ like Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s (RCB) Josh Hazlewood who had much success in the previous season.
"Last year, we observed how Hazlewood bowled; he consistently hit Test lengths. Our coach advised me to focus on my strengths and target that area. It’s a difficult length to score off, especially if the ball is moving," Mukesh said in the post-match press conference.
Why DC have backed Mukesh Kumar?
In DC’s opening clash, Mukesh remained wicketless but conceded just 17 runs from three overs. He opened up on why he has been backed by the team management over Nabi and overseas pacers like Kyle Jamieson and Dushmantha Chameera.
“There are practice matches before an IPL season. If you do well there, the management backs you. I did well in the practice match. So, the team has backed me. The performances are showing,” Mukesh said.
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Mukesh reads pitch better, uses variations
Not just Test match lengths, Mukesh added variations to his bowling as well. In addition, he has developed a mindset to always attack and look for wickets.
"You have to first read the pitch, whether it is slow or not. You have to make your plans accordingly. Here, if you hit the pitch hard, the bounce was generally low. I focused on that and mixed it up with cutters,” the Bengal pacer said.
“My mindset is still to take wickets. That is why I was bowling at the stumps. I was looking to attack.”
A revamped Mukesh will look to continue to do the same when DC taken on underconfident Gujarat Titans (GT) in their next home clash on April 8.