'He has semi-cemented his spot in future Indian team' - SRH bowling coach Dale Steyn on Umran Malik

Sunrisers Hyderabad might have lost their last match against the table-toppers Gujarat Titans by five wickets in a last-ball thriller, but the Orange Army gave GT a run for their money as youngster Umran Malik rattled their batting lineup with an outstanding fifer.

Meanwhile, an impressed SRH bowling coach Dale Steyn showered praise on the emerging speedster by saying that not only Malik is on the verge of wearing the Purple Cap with consistent performances this season but is also really close to donning the India jersey. It is to be noted that just like last season, Umran has been clocking a speed of over 150 kmph this time as well.

Umran was fantastic: Dale Steyn

“Umran was fantastic. I think he is semi-cemented his spot in that Indian team in the future. I may come to eat my words. He was wonderful today,” said Steyn while speaking in a video posted by the Sunrisers Hyderabad on their official Twitter handle.

“The pitch conditions suited him perfectly as it did for somebody like (Mohammed) Shami and ran in and hit the deck really hard. Bowled straight lines really quickly and disturbed the timber quite often. He was absolutely marvelous,” he added.

Apart from his lightning speed, another thing that stood out the most in Umran’s performances was the yorkers that deceived even the well-set batters, with Wriddhiman Saha being one of them after scoring a blistering 68 runs from just 38 deliveries. The Jammu and Kashmir pacer finished with figures of 5/25 from his four overs at an economy rate of 6.25.

The 22-year-old now has 15 scalps to his name from eight matches and is second on the Purple Cap list behind wrist-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal, who has 18 wickets to his name. The pace sensation would be hoping to repeat his heroics in the next game against the defending champions Chennai Super Kings at the Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium in Pune on May 1.