Former slogger Klusener says Baroda man should not be judged by stats
Formeru00a0slogger Klusener says Baroda man should not be judged by stats
After the three-wicket loss to South Africa in Nagpur, the performance of Yusuf Pathan could come under scrutiny.u00a0However, the 'Baroda Bomber' has received the backing of none other than Lance Klusener, the pioneer of hard-hitting in the slog overs.
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| Demolition man Yusuf Pathan in full cry. PIC/SURESH KK |
If Sanath Jayasuriya started the trend of throwing the kitchen-sink at the bowlers in the first 15 overs in the nineties, Klusener introduced the art of providing knockout punch in the death.
In the 1999 World Cup, 'Zulu' repeatedly proved that big hits lower down the order would never go out of fashion. In India as a commentator for the World Cup, Klusener was delighted to see the new breed of destroyers in the slog overs.
"Kieron Pollard should be the leading guy to play that kind of role. He is definitely somebody to watch. Yusuf Pathan's style does remind me of the Zulu of 1999. His hundred in SA was in that category. But, yes, consistency is the key. Yusufu00a0 is somebody with a huge potential," Klusener said. As much Klusener would have been pleased by Pollard's innings against Ireland, he must also have been disappointed by Pathan's so far subdued performance in the tournament. However, to be fair to the Indian, he barely got any overs to bat against Bangladesh and England. And, when the opportunity came in Delhi, he played a typical innings against the Netherlands.u00a0 Pathan has also managed to compensate for the lack of runs with his utility with the ball.
Although he has got just one wicket in the 28 overs he has bowled so far, his economy rate (4.96 runs per over) has been decent. And, that too despite being asked to bowl with the new ball in the powerplay in the last two matches. When India'su00a0 XI is decided against the WI in Chennai, his bowling performance may just give him the much needed insurance.
Klusener believes that the selectors and team management play a crucial role in the development of strikers like Pathan and Pollard.
"The role of the captain, the coach and more importantly the selectors is very important. It makes a huge difference to your performance when you are aware that you are not going to be judged on the number of runs or your average but what you ultimately bring to the table. If the Indian selectors and the team management can give Pathan that security, I think he will be even more dangerous," he said. One hopes that Pathan's failure in Nagpur had not changed the perception of the Indian team management.
