'Umran should be Bumrah’s deputy in T20 World Cup'- Harbhajan Singh

The rise of Umran Malik in the IPL 2022 has created a lot of buzz in world cricket. The fiery fast bowler from J&K has impressed everyone with his ability to hit the deck hard at a rapid pace. Experts reckon that it’s just a matter of time before Umran makes his much awaited India debut.

The former Indian cricketer Harbhajan Singh has registered his name in the long list of cricket pundits who want Umran to be drafted into the national side in a quick time. 

Addressing the reporters after ‘DreamSetGo’ became the official travel agent of the upcoming T20 world cup, Harbhajan opined that Umran Malik has the exceptional skills of bowling consistently at 150kph and therefore, he needs to be fast tracked to the Indian team. 

The ex-Indian spinner also termed the promising fast bowler as his ‘favourite bowler’ among the current lot and insisted that his inclusion into the Indian team would inspire many budding cricketers of Jammu. 

“He (Umran Malik) is my favourite, I want to see him in the Indian team because what a bowler he is,” Harbhajan said. "Tell me any one bowler who bowls more than 150 (kmph) and is not playing for the country. So, I think it is a great thing and he will inspire many youngsters to take up this game, where he has come from and what he is doing in IPL, he has been unbelievable,” he further added. 

Harbhajan even went on to say that if he was the selector, he would’ve definitely picked Umran in the Indian team as he thinks that the 22-year-old should be Jasprit Bumrah’s bowling partner in the T20 world cup to be played in Australia later this year. 

“And I don’t know whether he will be selected or not but if I was part of the selection committee, I would have given a go ahead. Umran Malik should partner Jasprit Bumrah when India plays in Australia (for the T20 World Cup),” Harbhajan opined.

The Punjab-born tweaker also clarified that age shouldn’t be a constraint while selecting a player. As he put it, a player gradually evolves by virtue of the experience he gets on the field and Umran is also expected to become a better bowler with every game. 

To justify his point, Harbhajan cited the examples of himself and the legendary Sachin Tendulkar as they both debuted for India as teenagers.  

“When Sachin (Tendulkar) played for India, he was very young. Of course, he was Sachin Tendulkar, but that’s okay, ‘aise hi player bante hai’ (players are made like this),” the former cricketer said. 

"When I played my first Test, I was 17 and half, but if you keep on thinking that he is a kid, then time will run out. When he is bowling at his best, he should be playing. Forget what his age is, when someone is performing well and is fit enough, they should walk in,” the 41-year-old concluded.