Mukesh Kumar, the pacer for Team India, was pleased with his performance in the Cape Town Test against South Africa. Mukesh Kumar was selected into the playing XI in place of Shardul Thakur after the first Test at Centurion ended in an innings and 32 runs, and he handled the challenge quite well.
There was a lot of talk about the historic spells from Mohammed Siraj and Jasprit Bumrah, Siraj claimed 6/15 in the first innings as South Africa were bowled out for 55, and Bumrah picked up 6/61 in the second. Mukesh Kumar also bowled exceptionally well as the third pacer.
Mukesh Kumar made a significant addition as well, taking two wickets in each innings. He got rid of Tony de Zorzi and Dean Elgar in the second innings of the Proteas. Mukesh also played in the T20I and ODI series in the Rainbow Nation prior to the Cape Town Test. In the second T20I in Gqeberha, he took 2/34 in three overs.
I am satisfied with my bowling-Mukesh Kumar
Mukesh Kumar reflected on his performance in the Newlands test, saying that he was pleased with the way he has performed and, most importantly, the hard work he has put in to give his best. As the Indian pacer reviewed how he performed in the Newlands Test, PTI cited him as saying:
“I think I have been able to fulfill the role assigned by the team management. I am satisfied with my bowling and best part is that I have worked hard and tried my best,”
Mukesh Kumar shared his thoughts on what adjustment he had to make while bowling in South African conditions as compared to Indian pitches. He stated that in India you have to bowl fuller length while here if you bowl fuller length then you will get smashed. So his plan was to keep bowling between 6 to 8 meter length.
“There’s a lot of difference between bowling on these kind of tracks compared to Indian pitches. In India, when you try to bowl fuller length the ball moves in the air, but here, if you try to bowl too full, you get smashed, So we decided that we will bowl between 6 to 8 meter length (back of length). And since there is lot of bounce on offer you can get wickets,” he elaborated.
He always tell us to pitch the ball in this particular length and channel to trouble the batsman- Mukesh Kumar on captain Rohit Sharma’s guidance
Mukesh was left out of the Centurion Test because India considered Shardul Thakur for his all-around abilities. On the other hand, for the crucial Newlands match, the pacer was selected for the playing XI. Mukesh bowled to captain Rohit Sharma in the nets for about an hour before the game.
When asked if he received any advice from the skipper, Mukesh told that:
“He always tells us about areas to bowl when we seek feedback in the nets. They would tell us ‘if you pitch the ball in this particular length and channel you can trouble us,”
It was Mukesh’s second Test match for India in Cape Town. In July 2023, he made his debut in Port of Spain against the West Indies, where he took two wickets. Mukesh Kumar will be seen in action in the T2oI series against Afghanistan, as he was named in the squad announced on January 7.