I have never seen the talent that Ishant has exhibited: Srinath

Former pace spearhead Javagal Srinath today lauded India's current breed of fast bowlers and singled out Ishant Sharma who, he believes, is loaded with 'extraordinary' talent and has taken Indian pace bowling to a different level altogether.

Srinath said under the watchful eyes of bowling coach Venkatesh Prasad, Indian pacers have become one of the most potent force in world cricket.

''I think India has never had a pacer of Ishant's talent. He has an extraordinary talent in him and for me he is right up there at the top amongst some of the best bowlers in the world,'' Srinath told mediapersons here today. Srinath was here at a funtion to announce the third year of the the Gatorade pace talent hunt and said the inclusion of physios and consultants, the game in the country has progressed at a rapid pace.

The former pacer also had words of praise for Zaheer Khan who, he said, has been a catalyst to India's success.

''Zaheer and Ishant have energised this Indian bowling. I hope many youngsters can take a cue from them and in future we can expect an even better bowling attack. ''Given the statistics over the past one year, I think the two (Zaheer and Ishant) have made the Indian pace attack amongst the best ones,'' Srinath replied to a query.

Off late Indian bowlers especially, pacers have produced fruitful results and the team does not depend on spinners for positive results on the sub-continent wickets.

''I believe it was always a misnomer that the Indian wickets had nothing to offer to pacers. But these two have have proved what a pacer can do if he keeps the bowl in the right places.

''Venkatesh has also played an important role in the success of these bowlers. I always felt that he was a very good thinker of the game.

''The way Venkatesh has handled these bowlers is tremendous,'' Srinath conceded.

The former pacer also expressed his concerns over the Mumbai attacks which has forced the game to move out of the Indian sub-continent.

However, he said the concerns were right but one must not let these attacks control the fate of the game and was also loud in his voice over the speculations that some players and teams having reservations over touring India.

He also said the 2011 World Cup, which is scheduled to take place in the sub-continent, is safe and there was no danger to the extravagant event.

''Yes, I think the game has suffered because of all this but the boards need to work out to come out of this situation.

''I have been hearing that some one has said this some has said that.... but have you heard them say anything. Let Flintoff stand up and say that he does not want to play in India,'' he conceded.

-- (UNI) -- 01SPD17.xml

Viewer's Comment

Comments Not Available

More Stories