Hyderabad: Indian paceman Umesh Yadav said on Monday that speed was his only virtue before he came in touch with senior pro and team mate Zaheer Khan, who taught him a few tricks of the trade to improve as a bowler.
Yadav said he learnt a lot from Zaheer during the last Australian tour, even though it ended in a disatrous 0-4 rout.
Yadav, with 14 wickets from four matches, was the second highest wicket-taker behind Zaheer on that tour.
“I didn’t know anything much besides bowling fast. Since I started bowling with Zak bhai, he told me that with my pace, if I can gain a bit of control over the ball, I’ll be a much better bowler and I’ll get many more wickets,” Yadav said.
“That’s what I did in the latter part of the Australia tour – concentrated more on my line and length than earlier. He had ingrained in me the length that I had to hit, and I constantly kept that in mind before every delivery. I’m still working on it and I have a long way to go,” he said.
“He told me the sooner you learn from your mistakes, the better you’ll get. I always keep that in mind and try not to repeat my mistakes,” he said.
Yadav said the team had forgettable time in Australia, but he returned richer in experience.
India thrashed New Zealand by an innings and 115 runs and Yadav said they will look to carry on with the momentum. (PTI)