Brian Lara comes in support of Umran Malik in World Cup 2023 selection and says, 'He will be sensational, but...'

With Jasprit Bumrah fit and available for the World Cup 2023 selection, the race for the pace attack has got better.

India’s pace sensation Umran Malik is currently in West Indies as part of India’s squad for the five-match T20I series. He is yet to play a game in the series, but has received huge praise and some advice from former West Indies captain Brian Lara. Umran Malik is seen as India’s future prospect in pace bowling and in the race for a place in the upcoming World Cup in 2023 in India. Malik has worked under Brian Lara in the Sunrisers Hyderabad camp. Lara was the batting coach of Sunrisers Hyderabad for two IPL seasons in 2021 and 2022. Lara has praised Malik but also suggested he should change some facets of his game.

Brian Lara suggest Umran Malik to make some changes

Umran Malik is known for his brute pace, and sometimes he has gone for too many runs due to his love for speed. Malik has also benefited from his game, but Lara has advised him to be sensible when bowling. Former West Indian captain Brian Lara said, “He will be a sensation, but very quickly he will have to learn that fast bowling really does not trouble the best players in the World. You have to have the ability to do something with the ball, be sensible, and maybe understand times when you have to trickle back or understand the times when you have to be up the tempo. He is young and has a lot of years ahead.”

Differentiating between pace and control, Lara has also suggested that Umran Malik should work with Dale Steyn, and he could be one of the best players India could produce. Brian Lara added, “We have had so many different examples. Wasim Akram had a raw pace, Malcolm Marshall had a destructive pace, and Michael Holding But they all know that at some point in time, they had to come up with a lot more tricks than just being able to bowl fast. If Umran works with Dale Steyn, he could definitely be one of the best India could produce.”

Umran Malik is seen as a possible member of the world cup squad along with Shardul Thakur, Jasprit Bumrah, and Mohammed Shami. Malik played two ODI games in the recently concluded series against West Indies but could only bowl six overs in those innings combined. Malik has played 10 ODIs for India and picked up 13 wickets, and 8 T20Is, picking up 11 wickets. His economic rate has been a cause of worry for everyone and will play a crucial role in his inclusion.

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