Hoping to use India A and first-class experience to my advantage in England, asserts Avesh Khan
India’s latest pace sensation Avesh Khan, who on Friday was named as a reserve for the Tests in England, has asserted that he hopes to use India A and first-class experience to his advantage to impress in England. Avesh further stated that he wants to continue his IPL rhythm in England.
The pandemic-induced lockdown, which led to a downfall in physical fitness, put a temporary halt to Avesh Khan’s surge last year, but his success in IPL 2021 did not come as a bolt from the blue. A regular for India A, Avesh picked up 28 wickets in the 2019/20 Ranji Trophy at 19.85 a piece and he was also the most prolific wicket-taker in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy this year, claiming 14 scalps in just 5 appearances. On Friday he was named as a reserve for India’s tour of England and the World Test Championship final, and the call-up was nothing but a reward for the Madhya Pradesh youngster’s immaculate consistency.
24 now, Avesh is no greenhorn, having played for India A multiple times and having taken 100 first-class wickets in just 26 games, and the youngster is now hoping to make his experience count. Speaking to cricket.com, Avesh, on the back of his well-deserved national call-up (as a reserve), insisted that come the England stretch, he will try to utilize the 7 years of FC experience he has under his belt to his advantage.
“I am really happy and will try to continue my IPL rhythm in England as well. In the last two years, I have developed many variations which were one of the major reasons for success in the IPL. But, the red-ball format is more about being consistent. I have been playing first-class cricket for 7-8 years now. I played India A cricket and I hope I can use that experience,” Avesh told cricket.com.
Bowling in England will not be an alien task for Avesh, who was a reserve bowler in the 2019 World Cup, and the 24-year-old also has prior experience with the Dukes ball, having bowled with it against the Windies ‘A’ side two years ago. The 24-year-old is confident that prior experiences will help him adapt quickly in a month’s time, where he’ll be touring England with the Indian team that’ll be eyeing to script history.
“I have bowled with Dukes Ball for India A against Windies. In England, the conditions will be pretty different but I am confident that I can adapt to that. In 2019, when I was in England as a part of the extra squad for the World Cup, I bowled mostly with a white ball. But that’s the fun part - getting to the thick of things as soon as possible this time.”
A major Covid outbreak brought IPL 2021 to an abrupt halt, but in half a season Avesh left his mark in the competition through some exceptional bowling. The right-armer thrived in all phases of the game and turned out to be the pick of the bowlers in the competition, even making life difficult for batters on flat wickets. The 24-year-old credited veteran Ishant Sharma and skipper Rishabh Pant for his success and revealed that the two not just guided him, but gave him the confidence to express himself.
“Ishant Bhai really helped me in identifying areas and when I should execute slower balls and when I should hold back. Having him around was a massive help. With Ishant Bhai on my side, I got to learn how to implement the slower balls successfully.
“On top of that, Rishabh is a very good captain as well. Our communication has always been good since our junior cricket days. He gave me the freedom to bowl according to my plans. If there’s any mistakes in the game, we would sit down after the game and talk it out. It was really helpful in a way that Rishabh is a very aggressive captain and is ready to take the chances.”