Indian pacers are ordinary: Holding

West Indian bowling great Michael Holding has put India as one of the favourites in the next month’s Champions Trophy but reckoned that the 50-over World Cup champions have an ordinary bowling line-up.

“ODI cricket is difficult to predict. But South Africa have the best team in the world right now. But that doesn’t necessarily mean they are going to win. India’s batting is so strong. They can get a lot of runs. Their bowling is not so strong. But if you get a lot of runs, you win games. You can have an unbalanced team but still win,” said Holding.

The West Indian fast bowling great made a surprise visit to Wankhede almost 30 years after he played a Test here in 1983. He was here to see her wife who is working on the IPL production feed.

On India’s seam attack Holding felt it was ordinary. “It’s ordinary. That’s all I can say. I’ve seen a few fast bowlers, who come in and bowl quick when they start, but they don’t last which is unfortunate. Something is going wrong. I don’t know if it’s the training or whatever.

“Look at Ishant Sharma. When he came in, he was quick. Now he’s no longer quick. He’s not the only one. I’ve seen it happen to quite a few others too. They are still good bowlers, but the pace is not there and they don’t create as much havoc as they should.

He maintained that Twenty 20 cricket is ruining the other formats. “It has affected every other form of cricket. If you get to watch something for three hours and so much excitement and dancing girls and fours and sixes, they get hooked on that,” he lamented.