Focus on hard lengths in ODIs: Alzarri Joseph

CHENNAI:  As the fireworks went off late into the night skies on May 29 at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad, Alzarri Joseph was crowned champion of the 2022 Indian Premier League with Gujarat Titans winning the title on their debut season. By the time the presentation ceremony and prize distribution got over, it was already May 30. Just over 24 hours later, Alzarri was in Amstelveen, turning up for West Indies in the first ODI against the Netherlands.

Since then, he has played six ODIs and two Tests across three different continents. The hectic scheduling in men’s cricket, at this point, is no secret. It’s not the first time such a thing has happened. But being a fast bowler, someone who’s had multiple injuries in the past, workload management becomes essential. While acknowledging that he has been playing continuously in the recent past, Alzarri believes that he and the West Indies support staff have managed to keep his body in good shape. “I have been playing for some time, but I think the management staff have been managing me really well,” the pacer told this daily in a chat facilitated by FanCode ahead of the ODI series against India.  

Although the lanky pacer made his ODI debut as early as 2016, intermittent injuries meant he has featured in only 48 of the 104 games West Indies have played since. However, in the last two years, he has been a regular in the ODI XI, missing just one game since May 2020. It is during this time that he has improved his pace. He believes that the extra pace adds to his armoury in the ODIs. 

“In ODIs, you might get away with one or two deliveries someone who doesn’t have the extra pace might not, in the back end when the guys are looking to go, you can beat them for pace even if you miss your length, or some less pace might go for a six. I prefer 6-7m length, that is what has given me most success, sometimes it depends on the conditions as well.”