Former teammates and coaches reveal why Ashish Nehra is still menacing in the international circuit

After Yuvraj Singh’s spirited comeback in the ODI series, it was time for the veteran left-arm pacer Ashish Nehra to show the world what he was capable of during the 3 match T20I series against the Englishmen. His impressive spell of 3/28 in the 2nd encounter helped India keep the 3 match series alive after losing the opening encounter. He was brilliant with both the new and the old ball and bowled according to the surface.

Making yet another comeback in his long and illustrious career after a knee surgery, Nehra never looked in any sort of discomfort apart from a few errors in the field which is quite normal considering his age and fitness. He also played the role of a mentor to Jasprit Bumrah which paid rich dividends as the lanky speedster came back strongly after a poor ODI series.

Nehra who will be turning 38 on April 29 is only one of the two active cricketers along with Harbhajan Singh to have made their debuts for India way back in 1999 under the captaincy of Mohammad Azharuddin. Despite playing at the international level for more than 18 years, the hunger is still there with Ashish Nehra but what are the other aspects which keep him in good stead even after so many years? From Harbhajan Singh to India’s former bowling coach Bharat Arun everyone had one thing in common to say about Nehra.

“High skill level, analytical mind and thorough knowledge about his own body that has helped him sustain for so long. His skill level is in a different league. Like Virat Kohli can gauge what a bowler will bowl and exactly what shot he will hit, Ashish exactly knows what a batsman can hit if he bowls a particular delivery and sets the field accordingly. I know the amount of pain he has gone through but what helped him is knowing his body,” Harbhajan was quoted as saying by the PTI.

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Speaking on how even at the age of 38, Nehra manages to click 140km, Harbhajan said, “That’s because of his bone structure. He looks lean but has a high bone density. If he sits on you, you would suddenly feel, ‘Gosh this guy is heavy’ But he doesn’t look like a big bodied beefed up guy.

“Also he runs a lot. He is still one of the best runners in this Indian team. After so many injuries, he has worked a lot on his lower body. He bowls fast because of a good lower body and synchronisation in his run-up,” Bhajji added.

Bharat Arun, India’s former bowling coach stated that how Nehra used two totally different kinds of bouncers to bamboozle the opposition batsmen. “He can bowl two bouncers which are completely different from each other. He bowls a steady yorker and a fantastic good length delivery which rears up. The T20 format suits him perfectly as he can bowl flat out. The best part is that he was never a 125 kmph bowler. He is always a 135 kmph bowler. That’s because, in T20, you need to bowl 24 deliveries and that gives him license to go flat out,” Arun was quoted as saying by the Sportstar.

Former India wicket-keeper and Nehra’s one-time teammate Vijay Dahiya also said that Nehra had enjoyed the positive sides of injuries which have kept him in good stead. “Ashish has had his share of injuries and that I believe has been a key to fast bowling. Unlike other bowlers, he has been forced to play less cricket and that has kept him fresh. Also, he is a practical man.

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“He knew that he will not play Test matches due to his body, so he did not play Ranji Trophy and concentrated on limited overs matches and got the best out of him,” Dahiya said. Speaking on Nehra’s chances of making a comeback in the ODI setup for the upcoming Champions Trophy in England, both Dahiya and Arun feels that if Nehra does eye a comeback in England then he will invariably play the Vijay Hazare Trophy.

“For a 50-over match, you need to work even harder on your fitness as he has to match the levels of 25-year-olds. Only Ashish knows if he can do it or not,” Harbhajan said.

“If Ashish has Champions Trophy in mind, then he will certainly play Vijay Hazare Trophy. How do you use him if his body permits? A spell of 6 overs at the beginning and 4 overs in the final 10 where he is still the best Indian bowler around. Now if his body responds, he will certainly be handy in English conditions,” Dahiya was quoted as saying by the Sportstar.

A former member of the 1983 World-Cup winning team, Madan Lal stated that people never understood the difference between fitness issues and an injury. The former medium-pacer also stated that there was never a problem with Ashish’s place in the side but the injuries throughout his career have stalled his consistent participation in the national team.

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“Let me tell you, Ashish has never been dropped because of poor form or fitness issues. He always got injured, an unavoidable part of sport. As Delhi coach or even as national selector, we never ever discussed or debated his qualities as everyone knew what he is capable of. His skills and his ability to guide youngsters like Jasprit Bumrah make him an asset even now,” Madan Lal quoted.

India will now shift their focus from limited overs cricket to Test cricket as they meet a spirited Bangladesh in the one-off Test in Hyderabad starting on February 9 followed by a 4 match Test series against Australia starting in Pune from 23^rd February.