Former South African pace bowler Eric Simons has said that what he liked best from Indian bowlers was the manner in which they supported each other, adding that Indian bowlers always seemed to be consistent and persistent, always seemed to have a plan for every situation.
The 59-year-old former India bowling consultant was a coach at the Indian Premier League (IPL) side Chennai Super Kings’s bowling unit. He claimed that the Indian pace bowlers in the ongoing Test series against the Proteas were their perseverance.
"What I like about this Indian attack is that you can see the plan. You can see what each one is trying to do and how each one complements the other," Simons, who has 4,264 first-class runs and 330 wickets, told news18.com on Sunday. "As a grouping, not only the ones who are in the eleven, but the extension, Umesh Yadav and Ishant Sharma, they all have a role and complement each other well. There is an obvious plan in place and they are consistent and persistent."
On India's Test series vs. South Africa
India is currently in a 1-1 tight situation in their Test series against South Africa. The visitors are currently hoping to win the final match in a bid of winning their maiden Test series win in the Rainbow Nation. Simons, who played 23 ODIs for South Africa, pointed out the difference between the bowlers of the two teams, saying that the India team's bowling had variations in them, unlike that of the home country.
"If you draw the beehive of the fast bowlers from both teams, you will see the difference," Simons said. "South Africa’s is quite wide and India’s is quite close. You have someone like Jasprit Bumrah who comes from wide and attacks the stumps.
"Mohammed Shami comes in from close to the stumps and does the same thing. Siraj is also someone who naturally attacks the stumps. That has been the difference between the two sides. Where the Proteas have occasionally been loose, India have attacked the stumps or kept the ball in that channel of uncertainty as we call it."
Simons said that the Indian teams have evolved over the years, becoming more tactically clever as well as more patient and consistent with their tactics, especially in the instances they are playing away from their homeland.
"When I worked with some of the Indian bowlers because they had to work so hard for wickets in India and because they didn’t bowl long spells, with the spinners coming into the game early, they were a little impatient and they tried to do too many things," he continued.
But I find now they have become very clever tactically, simplified their game plan and become more patient. Yes, to the extent that they have had to work very hard for their wickets in Indian conditions, but, you can’t be lazy. In the last 3-5 years, Indian bowlers have become a lot more patient and consistent with their tactics, which is what has made them particularly good playing away."
