India fast bowler Akash Deep hailed the pace spearhead, saying he has been uniquely crafted by God and it's really tough on someone to follow his actions.
Akash had a forgetful Test debut in February against England in Ranchi when Rahul Dravid had handed him his cap. He made everyone take notice with a hostile opening spell. After impressive performances in the red-ball cricket, he now found a place in the 16-member squad for the first Test against Bangladesh in Chennai.
"It is a huge responsibility given to me, by which I can serve for my team. Shami bhai is injured at the moment. I am taking it as a responsibility and trying to give my best, trying to live upto the faith of the selectors and BCCI management," Akash Deep told IANS about his selection to the Indian squad.
Asked about his inspiration behind his fast bowling, Akash Deep said, "I don't follow just one bowler too much", and heaved praise on Bumrah as a different kettle of fish while admitting that he can't learn everything from him as he is tough to follow.
"Every bowler in the world has his own unique action and technique, and each one is great in his own way. I follow Rabada a bit, and Bumrah is a legend. It is hard to follow him. 'Bumrah bhai ko bhagwan ne alag hi bana k bheja hai', and main usse sab kuch seekh nahi saktus. I also observe Siraj and learn from him. I pick up small things from various bowlers, but main sirf ek bowler ko bahut zyada follow nahi karta ," said Akash Deep.
Recalling his playing of the first international match under the captaincy of Rohit Sharma, the fast bowler was all praises for the T20 world cup-winning skipper; he said that Rohit keeps the dressing room at ease for its members.
"I played my first match under Rohit bhaiya in Ranchi. I was thinking about how difficult it would be to play my debut match for the country. There's something special about him-when I played that first game, it didn't even feel like I was playing for India. He manages things so well, talks in a way that puts you at ease, and gives simple plans which make cricket easier. Playing under him is a matter of luck for any cricketer," he said.
On working under new head coach Gautam Gambhir, he said, "I haven't played under him yet. I met him during the IPL. I keep him under close observation. The 2007 T20 World Cup took place when I were just starting my cricket. The way he fights for the game of cricket makes me feel that it will be great fun playing under his captaincy as well."
The 27-year-old has started the new domestic season in impressively last week in Duleep Trophy, with a match haul of 9-116 for India A in their loss to India B. "I will not try to do something different but will focus on my strength and perfect areas to bowl," he said, talking about his strategy against Bangladesh, who have recently inflicted a 2-0 Test series sweep over Pakistan.
"As a bowler, you can depend upon your areas and strengths, it comforts you, and the percentage of delivering a better performance gets bigger. I won't try to do something different. In Test cricket, we have to bowl in good areas and dry up the runs. If you are drying up the runs, the batter starts making mistakes. And slowly, you get an idea of what mistake the batter is making and what plans we can execute," signed off the fast bowler.
Asked to talk about his share of struggles in his cricketing journey so far, Akash Deep spoke sensibly, citing a famous Bollywood movie dialogue, "Kehte hain agar kisi cheez ko dil se chaho, to puri kainaat usse tumse milane ki koshish mein lag jaati hai."
"When you strive for something with a lot of effort, then you do not feel it is a struggle; rather, you enjoy it. I never felt that I struggled a lot for cricket. There are challenges in the family and even if I didn't play cricket those challenges would still be there. Whatever cricket I played, be it club cricket or practice matches, everybody motivated, supported me, be it state coaches or club coaches," he said.
On the comparison of white ball and red ball cricket, the fast bowler said, "Red-ball cricket is tough; there, along with physical strength, a player needs to be mentally strong.".
"Red-ball cricket is a challenge for fast bowlers. If you can survive that, you can handle white-ball cricket too. You play red-ball cricket for five days and sometimes you need to bowl for three to four days. That's why your physical strength is important and your mental strength too. As a fast bowler, if you bowl 10-15 overs spell before lunch or tea, then your body is tired and at that moment, your mental strength helps a lot," he said.
For this right-arm pacer, Sachin Tendulkar was the inspiration among the legendary batters. "Sachin sir's down-to-earth nature has inspired me since childhood. Besides his batting, I followed his personality which kept me motivated."
