Team India's bowling coach Bharat Arun explains reason behind the success of Indian pace attack

For years, Indian cricket has desired to have a good fast-bowling unit. We have had many great fast-bowlers through the times but India never really had an attack which could cause trouble for batsmen.

In recent times, Ishant Sharma, Umesh Yadav, Mohammed Shami and Jasprit Bumrah have come together and formed a formidable line-up. Together these four bowlers have created a camaraderie which many batsmen might not like to face.

Bharat Arun, the bowling coach of the Indian cricket team has often been given the credit for developing these good bowlers into a great fast-bowling unit.

In an interview recently, Arun, who himself was medium-pace bowler, credited the idea of workload management as the reason behind the success of the Indian pace attack. He explained how tracking the movements on the field can help them understand a player’s workload.

We use GPS tracker to monitor bowlers’ movements: Bharat Arun

“When we talk about workload management, we are looking at the number of overs a bowler has bowled. But then a bowler can over-exert himself in a game and that is not under your control. So we use the GPS tracker to monitor all his movements on the field,” he was quoted as saying by The Times of India.

Arun joined the Indian team as a bowling coach on the recommendations made by the head coach Ravi Shastri. Since his appointment, the strength of the Indian attack has increased significantly.

Arun further explained how the information received from the tracker is used to understand a player’s body. He pointed out that this is the reason why the fast-bowlers of the current Indian team can continuously bowl at top speeds.

“For example, a bowler runs around 20 km on the field. And the tracker gives us a lot of data and information about the bowler concerned. By analysing this data, you can manage the workload at training sessions. Basically, you need to find the right balance. And the Indian bowlers have managed to do that so far,” he said. “This is the reason why we are successful as a bowling unit and the bowlers can bowl at 140 kmph regularly,” he added.