Umran Malik, the pace sensation for Sunrisers Hyderabad, has taken the Indian Premier League (IPL) by storm in 2022. The youngster from Jammu and Kashmir has become the tournament’s biggest talking point, with many veteran cricketers even backing him for a spot in the T20 World Cup squad, let alone the Indian side, thanks to his breakneck pace and ability to pick wickets. On Thursday, veteran Pakistani wicket-keeper batsman Kamran Akmal praised the Indian pacer and admitted that if he had been from Pakistan, he would have easily made his first appearance in international cricket by now.
Kamran, who played in the IPL for Rajasthan Royals in 2008, believes Umran is a strike bowler despite going for big runs, and praised Indian cricket for the pace bowling revolution they have brought to their squad.
“Perhaps he would have played international cricket if he had been born in Pakistan.” His economy rate is high, but he is a strike bowler because he is taking wickets,” Akmal told Paktv.tv.
“After every match, he gets a speed chart with him clocking around 155 km/h and it doesn’t go down.” The Indian team is up against some stiff competition. Navdeep Saini, (Mohammed) Siraj, (Mohammed) Shami, and (Jasprit) Bumrah were once among India’s best fast bowlers, but now they have a plethora.
“Even Umesh Yadav is bowling exceptionally well. With 10-12 pacers in the ranks, Indian selectors are finding it difficult to make decisions,” he said.
He has 15 wickets in 11 games this season, including a sensational five-wicket haul against Gujarat Titans. Before comparing Umran to legendary pacers like Shoaib Akhtar and Brett Lee, the 40-year-old praised India for giving him the opportunity to play an entire IPL season.
“He only played one or two games last season.” He would have played for us if he had been in Pakistan. However, Indian cricket showed maturity by giving Malik the opportunity to play in the entire IPL season. Brett Lee and Shoaib (Akhtar) bhai were also expensive, but they took wickets, which is what strike bowlers should do, according to Akmal.
