IPL 2019: Caribbean speedster Alzarri Joseph ecstatic to play for MI

Young Caribbean fast bowler Alzarri Joseph has already made a name in international cricket and now he is set to get the first taste of the Indian Premier League (IPL). Three-time champions Mumbai Indians (MI) have called the 22-year-old to replace the injured Kiwi pacer, Adam Milne, in their squad. Joseph, the hero of the U19 World Cup of 2016 that Windies had won beating the Boys in Blue, reached India last week and had his first training session with the MI at the Wankhede Stadium on Sunday.

Led by Rohit Sharma, the MI have had a roller-coaster ride in the tournament with one win and two losses. They lost to Delhi Capitals by 37 runs in the first match but then beat Royal Challengers Bangalore in a controversial thriller by six runs. But the star-studded team were hammered by Kings XI Punjab by 8 wickets in their last match on Saturday. The blue and gold squad will need to be back to the winning ways even though they will be taking on Chennai Super Kings, the table toppers at the moment, in their next encounter at the Wankhede Stadium on April 3.

Lot of tall buildings in India

The arrival of the sensational fast bowler in Joseph might tempt the MI team management to play him even if the team has little dearth of quality pacers. “It’s my first time in India, it’s much bigger than what I am accustomed to back home. There are a lot of tall buildings here, from where I come from there are mainly a lot of trees and a lot of water. This is a very established city, I haven’t really seen much but I am going to try and experience it as much as possible and experience India as a whole,” Joseph was quoted as saying by MI TV.

Joseph, who lost his mother during the second Test match against England at home in February, was enjoying the IPL from the comforts of his home when he got a call to take part in it and the youngster was thrilled.

“I was actually back home and watching IPL, then I got a call from the team manager and it was like ‘Wow, is this real?’ It’s my first time in IPL, with such a big team and such a big reputation. I am just going to come here and give it my all,” Joseph, who was coached by former Windies pacer Winston Benjamin, said, also adding that he was keen to learn from Lasith Malinga, his colleague in the MI and Zaheer Khan, the franchise’s bowling coach.

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