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Rudra Pratap Singh was quite easily India's best bowler last season. The left-arm pacer made a comeback to the team for the tour of Bangladesh last year and since then has been consistent with the ball.
He was the stand-out bowler in India's Twenty20 World Cup triumph, finishing with a haul of 12 wickets to emerge the second-highest wicket taker in the tournament. He also impressed on the tour of England, his ability to swing the ball at a good pace playing a big role in India's historic series triumph.
More recently, his six-wicket haul in the Perth Test helped India shock the Australians in their own backyard before a hamstring injury ruled him out of the rest of the tour.
Since then it's been a difficult time for the left-armer. Playing on flat pitches against South Africa at home, he found it difficult to take wicket and was subsequently dropped after the first two Tests.
The 22-year-old pacer, in a free-wheeling interview with Special Correspondent Harish Kotian, reviews his first full season in international cricket and talks about the tough conditions he encountered in the two Tests he played against South Africa.
The Chennai match was your first Test in India. How tough was the experience of playing on a wicket dominated by batsmen?
It was very tough. The conditions were very hot and humid. The wicket was not also in favour of the bowlers. The other thing, I was coming back from an injury, so it was quite tough for me because I also had to prove myself.
Don't you think the criticism on the fast bowlers is unjustified, since the wickets in the first two Tests have been so flat?
The wicket [at Chennai] was a batting paradise. It was quite slow and there was no help at all for the fast bowlers; that is why you saw such high scores. Virender Sehwag scored a triple hundred and batted quite well. There was no nip in the wicket and that is why it was difficult for us.
How was it that the South African pacers got the ball to reverse swing?
It was not that we didn't get reverse swing. We also got the ball to reverse a bit, but if there is nothing in the pitch the effects won't show. To reverse swing the ball, you need maintain the ball well else it is difficult. We tried everything possible to make it swing, but South Africa also batted well.
Does bowling with the SG ball also make a difference as far as reverse swing is concerned?
Yes, we have been playing with SG balls in India since I started playing. We can control the SG ball better and it is also possible to get reverse swing. But the pitch was so flat that it was not possible to do anything.
How challenging is it bowling in such conditions, where there is no help for the bowlers?
It is very challenging for fast bowlers. You need to come up with new tricks constantly in order to survive in such tough conditions. I take it up as a challenge to bowl on such pitches. In any form and on any pitch, you need to bowl in the right areas to get wickets and that is what I try and do.
How important is the presence of bowling coach Venkatesh Prasad?
It has been very important to have him and all the support staff. Venkatesh Prasad played many matches for India and he is using that experience to help us develop as fast bowlers. He told us to be patient and constantly keep developing new things in our bowling.
How is it working with a new setup -- coach Gary Kirsten and mental conditioning coach Paddy Upton?
They plan things quite well. Our schedules have been planned with great thought. They stress on the mental toughness part, which is also a big factor in a player's improvement. Without mental toughness, a player won't improve and his graph will not go up. Gary and Paddy are working hard to make sure our mental toughness graph goes and we maintain it at high level.
What does mental toughness mean for a fast bowler?
Mental toughness for a fast bowler involves knowing the conditions well and absorbing them. It is about knowing to how to preserve yourself in the toughest conditions and give your best whenever you get the chance. So mental toughness is all about how you perform against the conditions.
You had a very good run in 2007, including the tour of England, the Twenty20 World Cup till the tour of Australia, from where you had to return home early due to injury. You kept improving with every game, how was it possible?
Yes, I tried to improve my bowling with every game that I played. It started from the Bangladesh tour, where the season started; my improvement started from there. I started picking up the right length to bowl from that tour and slowly I kept improving at it. The team also produced good results which gave me a lot of confidence.
I utilised my full potential as far as my bowling was concerned by speaking to my coaches. Basically, I was looking to get better with the opportunities I was getting.
How important was the tour of England, especially that five-wicket haul in the first Test at Lord's? It was only after that match that you were able to make a permanent place in the Test side.
Yes, before that Lord's match I was not a permanent member of the Test side. I had played only two Test matches in Pakistan, where I took 10 wickets, but could make it to the Test side after that. The England tour was a good tour in that regard because I took a lot of wickets, including the five-wicket haul at Lord's. It was there that my career got the stability it needed and I became a permanent member of the Test side.
In other words, the Lord's Test was the turning point of my career. The second Test match at Nottingham was also important for our team because we won a series in England after a long time. Our batsmen performed well throughout the tour, while the bowlers also supported them well and that is what made that series successful.
You had a good time in the Twenty20 World Cup, claiming 12 wickets to finish as the second-highest wicket taker. What was the secret of your good performance since Twenty20 cricket is considered as nightmare for the bowlers?
Absolutely! As you said, it is a batsman-dominated game. It is a very short game and there is little time to think when you are in the middle. I just looked to bowl in the right areas and I was rewarded with wickets. I ended up with 12 wickets in six matches and was the second-highest wicket taker behind [Pakistan pacer] Umar Gul, who took 13 in seven matches. One of our matches [against Scotland] was rained out otherwise, maybe, even I could have ended up as the highest wicket taker. Agreed that Twenty20 is not a bowler's game, but if you take it as a challenge there is a lot you can do.
The most important thing for a bowler is to look to stop runs. You must try and bowl according to your field, and if you can keep doing that consistently, you will be rewarded with wickets.
You were midst of a good run in 2007 when you got injured during the Test series in Australia. How disappointing was it to be ruled out when you were doing so well and played a big part in the Test win at Perth?
The experience in Australia was very good and I learnt a lot. I had to shoulder a lot of responsibility after taking over as the lead bowler during the tour, when Zaheer Khan had to pull out after the first Test due to injury. I took a step up and was delighted to make a contribution in India's victory at Perth. Everything was going on so well and suddenly I got injured. It made me really sad that I was forced to take a break from the game because of the injury when I was bowling so well. However, I also accepted that injuries are part and parcel of the game and you cannot control it.
Some critics said you were not hundred percent in the first two Tests against South Africa. How do you react to such criticisms?
As far as my fitness is concerned, I don't think there should be any doubts, because I have played a full Test. You can play a Test and bowl a lot of overs only if you are fully fit. It is like if you perform, people praise you a lot, but if you fail then the next day they are waiting to pull you down. But we as cricketers only look to perform; we have done it in the past and there is no reason why can't do it in the matches to come.
How excited are you about the upcoming Indian Premier League?
It is a new format and I am quite excited about it. We are the world champions in this format, so that makes it quite interesting for us. I am keenly looking forward to it.