Umesh Yadav is proud to be a member of “the best Indian pace bowling unit”.
However, the 31-year-old pacer who has come a long way since starting his journey in a village close to the Vidarbha cricket capital, is not fully satisfied. He obviously revels in the success of his three famed colleagues who were the toast of cricket globe in the year gone by, but feels he “deserves a consistent run in the playing XI rather than a one-off appearance in a series.”
“I would say there have been plenty of ups and downs of late. Sometimes you get a few games on the run and then you have to wait for your chance, so a bowler’s rhythm is affected a little bit.
“Bowling in the nets is different than playing a match. Usually when I play matches continuously, I feel the body responds well and I get into a rhythm,” Umesh told The Hindu after helping Vidarbha roll over Uttarakhand in the Ranji Trophy quarterfinal.
Chance wasted
After emerging as only the second Indian pacer after Kapil Dev to earn a 10-wicket haul versus the West Indies, Umesh had hoped for more opportunities in the four-Test series. However, he wasted the only chance he got in the series — at Perth — due to “lack of rhythm”.
“When you aren’t getting a consistent run, you are thinking more about how to earn a chance (when you play). When you play one or two games overseas in a year, it definitely makes a difference. In Tests, I have played five matches in the last year and in ODIs and T20s, I have been on-off, on-off... so it does matter a lot.”
Ever since he featured in each of India’s 13 Tests in the home season in 2016-17, Umesh has found himself warming the benches on overseas Test tours. In ODIs, he continues to be in the dark. In fact, he has no clarity over whether he is being looked at as a World Cup prospect.
No clarity
“When it comes to clarity, the selectors will have to think about it. As a bowler, I haven’t played any major tournaments. I just get an odd game in a series and then omitted. If you don’t get chances, how will you prove yourself? I played just four-five ODIs last season. I got two games in England, two against the West Indies and then they picked me for the T20s and now I am out again,” said Umesh.
“If I have been performing in the IPL, they have to give me a fair chance. I should get a consistent run to prove myself. If I can’t do well, then I can accept it. But if you get just one or two games in a year, even when you come in, you tend to carry too much pressure just to maintain your place in the side rather than giving your best and helping the team win.”