Cummins heaps praise on supportive skipper Zaheer
Delhi Daredevils (DD) may not have got a favourable result in their recent match against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) on Monday, but they had plenty of positives to take away from the game.
The four-wicket defeat to KKR is the second in the 2017 Indian Premier League season for the Daredevils.
However, Sanju Smason’s agile fielding and Pat Cummins’ improving relationship with captain Zaheer Khan is sure to delight DD fans.
Speaking to reporters after the defeat, Australian pacer Cummins praised Zaheer’s captaincy and said he enjoyed the novelty of playing under a bowler.
“I wish I could take him [Zaheer Khan] back to Australia with me,” Cummins said.
“I’m enjoying playing with him. It’s not often you get a bowler as a captain and such an experienced one,” he said.
Zaheer and Cummins are part of the Daredevils bowling attack that also includes Chris Morris and Amit Mishra.
Despite the results not going the team’s way — two wins and two losses in four matches so far — the bowling combination has proved to be a positive.
Shedding light on what works for the DD bowlers, Cummins said he enjoyed himself because Zaheer gave him the freedom to bowl as he pleased without worrying about field placements and conceding boundaries.
“You want to bowl a yorker, bowl a yorker. You want to bowl a bouncer, bowl a bouncer,” is what Zaheer told Cummins during the match.
Knight Riders’ Manish Pandey had the biggest impact on the game, scoring an unbeaten 69 off 49-balls which included a 110-run partnership with Yusuf Pathan (59 runs from 39 balls).