While sources say Pravin Kumar's fitness test didn't go well in Bangalore yesterday, MiD-DAY tells you what India could miss at the World Cup...
While sources say Pravin Kumar's fitness test didn't go well in Bangalore yesterday,u00a0MiD-DAY tells you what India could miss at the World Cup...Praveen Kumar is almost certainly out of India's World Cup squad.
'PK' underwent a fitness test at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Bangalore yesterday and sources close to MiD DAY confirmed that the Uttar Pradesh pacer hadn't recovered from the elbow injury he sustained during India's T20 international against South Africa in Durban last month.
Ever since he led India to a famous win in the best-of-three finals of the Commonwealth Bank Series in Australia in January 2008, Kumar has been a permanent fixture in Mahendra Singh Dhoni's one-day and
Twenty20 outfits. Here's why Kumar, who can cause trouble for the opposition with his swing, may be
such a big World Cup loss:
Go-to manKumar enjoys an exceptional record in India's victories. In 32 games won by India since his debut, he has 49 wickets at 25 runs per scalp.
Smart OperatorIf ODIs in the last 24 months are anything to go by, Dhoni has put more faith in Kumar in pressure situations than anyone else in his arsenal.
For Kumar, 30 of his 57 career wickets have come when India have defended totals, at a striking economy rate of 5.2 and strike rate of 33.
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Top-order wreckerInvariably, he strikes with the new ball in his hand. He has developed the knack of removing top-order batsmen.
Kumar has dismissed established batsmen such as Kumar Sangakkara (4 times), Ricky Ponting (4), Tillakaratne Dilshan (3) and Mahela Jayawardene (3) on multiple occasions.
Grey area?Kumar's record in home conditions hasn't been impressive.
In 14 games, the Meerut-born bowler has only nine wickets at 67.
Furthermore, he leaks almost 5.8 runs per over when India play at home.
