Ishant Sharma – From a tearaway youngster to mature leader of the attack

Ishant Sharma remains a constant in the Indian Test team. The selectors have also entrusted him for a long time because the value he provides to the team. Having made his Test debut in 2007, Sharma has shown tremendous evolution as a fast bowler in the past few years. Starting from 2017, Sharma has been enjoying the peak of his career.

Second wind

Under Virat Kohli’s captaincy, Ishant has played 38 Tests and managed to take 112 wickets at an average of 25.20. Considering the fact that his career bowling average is 32.17, these numbers are quite good and can be termed as the second half of Ishant’s career. His potential was discovered when he travelled to Australia as a 19-year-old fast bowler. In that series of 2007-08, he had shown his skills as a speedy pacer.

However, with time, his speed has dropped from 145 kmph to 135 or 140 kmph, but his accuracy has improved. After being in a group of pacers who struggled in the overseas conditions, the right-hander became the leader of the attack. Since 2017, Sharma has picked five-fors in England and New Zealand. He also had a lot of success with the ball in Australia and was instrumental in India winning their first Test series down under.

In the ongoing series between India and England, Sharma notched up his 300th Test wicket. With this, he became the only third Indian pacer to take more than 300 wickets in Tests. He is only behind Zaheer Khan (311 wickets) and Kapil Dev (434 wickets). Sharma has played 99 Tests and the next Test will be his 100th. By doing so, he will also become the only second pacer in the history of Indian cricket to reach the milestone.

When Sharma arrived on the scene in 2007, there were a few more young pacers who were in the frame, but only he has survived the test of time. The fact that he is only 32 years old brings butterflies in the stomachs of Indian fans. The pacer is getting fitter as well with time. If he manages to stay fit and avoid injuries, he might even play 150 Tests.

But, Sharma’s story is one for the ages and an inspiration for many. He has gone through many Test matches, where he had underwhelming performances due to inexperience, inconsistency or lack of good partnership bowlers, but he has been persistent, taking each match as an experience and working hard on his skills. Ishant Sharma deserves all the praise for his skills and has been terrific for India in the last decade.