IND vs NZ | Will take Navdeep Saini under own wing and ensure he develops, attests Mohammad Shami

The latest addition to India’s formidable pace battery has been the Haryana-born youngster Navdeep Saini, who, despite only having played a handful of international matches, has caught the attention of many with his raw talent. After having blooded the youngster into the ODI and T20I side in the home season, the selectors decided that it was the right time to expose Saini to the game’s longest format and with an injury cloud surrounding Ishat Sharma, included the tall pacer in the team’s 15-man squad.

Mohammad Shami, who has been a vital cog in India’s lethal pace battery, was full of praise for the 27-year-old and the veteran assured that the senior pacers in the side - such as himself, Umesh Yadav and Jasprit Bumrah - will ensure they take Saini under their own wings and give the youngster every chance to develop his skill. 

“He is young. He has height and pace which he can use in red-ball cricket. It is not like he hasn’t played at all, but as a youngster, he needs some help from the pace-bowling unit. As seniors, we have to carry him with us and give him the required support that he needs,” Shami said in the press conference post Day 2 of India’s warm-up game in Wellington.

“Everyone grows with the game, he has talent, and we will give him every chance to improve his skill and do well for the team.”

One of the more fascinating aspects about the Indian pace battery has been their ability to be successful across formats - irrespective of conditions - and over the course of the last 18 months, the Indian pacers have outbowled their Aussie, South African and English counterparts. Shami revealed that no matter the format, it is key for bowlers to land the ball in the right areas and stick to the basics and said that consistency will automatically be rewarded. He also revealed that the wicket in the team’s ongoing warm-up game in Wellington is ‘juicy and green’. 

“Doesn’t matter whether it is red-ball or white-ball, the basics remain the same. We have been mature enough, have enough confidence to do well. We need to land the ball at good areas, restrict the run-flow and wickets will automatically come. 

“Bounce in different countries are different, the last time we were here, the wickets were flat. But in the practise game, it was more juicy and green. We have to adjust the wicket as per the conditions dished out for us.  

From Mayank Agarwal to Hanuma Vihari to Prithvi Shaw, over the course of the last 18 months, there have been a bunch of youngsters who have seamlessly blended into the main XI and Shami believes that the presence of experienced players in the team - who are also friendly and out-spoken - helps youngsters mature and settle quickly. The right-arm pacer also emphasized on the importance of experience and stated that it held the key to teams not going into panic mode in alien situations.

“In all three formats, experience matters a lot. It helps you not to panic, because sometime you would know how a particular wicket or condition will aid your bowling. I feel the blend of youngsters and experience helps the youngsters get matured quickly. We laugh with the youngsters, make them feel like home and that automatically shows in their performances," Shami added.