Powar returns to haunt Mumbai as their bowling doubts continue
MUMBAI: Former Mumbai offspinner Ramesh Powar will return to Wankhede after a gap of two seasons but this time as a visitor when his side Gujarat take on the 40-time Ranji Trophy champions from Tuesday.
His return comes at a time when Mumbai are grappling to find a match-winner in the spin department, which they have lacked since Powar’s departure in 2013.
Besides the 38-year-old offie, Gujarat will also have India tweaker Axar Patel in their ranks. By contrast, Mumbai have been left depleted after it emerged that Mumbai’s current crop – Vishal Dabholkar and Ankush Jaiswal – were reported for suspect action during their previous match against Madhya Pradesh in Indore.
The players have since been excluded from Mumbai’s squad and also had their actions tested at Sri Ramachandra Sports Medicine Centre’s bio mechanical facility in Chennai.
Since Powar’s departure in 2013, Mumbai have struggled to find a suitable replacement. Ankeet Chavan was emerging soon caught in a bind during the Indian Premier League’s (IPL) spot-fixing scandal. Dabholkar and Jaiswal’s exit have made the matters worse for Mumbai.
LACK OF QUALITY
“I would not say there is dearth of spinners, but I would say that quality spinners are not coming up as they should,” said Powar, who was the last spinner from Mumbai to play for the national team.
“The coaching needs to improve. I don’t see bowlers getting the right advice. I don’t see bowlers giving the ball any dip becomes difficult on batting tracks.
“Mentoring in the team also goes a long way in making a good player into a great one. In my time, senior spinners like Nilesh Kulkarni and Sairaj Bahutule guided us. In the current team, there is no one to play that role, because beyond technique the advice that you get on the field makes a lot of difference,” he added.
Speaking about the spate of suspect action cases, Powar said that the demand of limited overs cricket is spoiling the players. “In India, other than the odd rank turners, wickets usually favour the batsmen. In their thirst of wickets, many bowlers try to bowl with an angle trying to get fast spin from the surface,” said Powar who has represented India in two Tests and 31 ODIS.
Incidentally, Dabholkar had impressed in his outing against Tamil Nadu where he picked up 12 wickets on a pitch that had otherwise done little to help the bowlers. Jaiswal impressed on his debut in Indore picking up four wickets.
“Suspect actions need to be nipped in the bud early in a bowler’s career. It becomes difficult to curb it at such a stage as the stakes are high when bowlers get