'We thought he is something special and different than other leg spinners, because he bowled little bit quicker than the others and he has variations.'
Sri Lanka's spin legend Muttiah Muralitharan, who is bowling coach of Sunrisers Hyderabad, on Tuesday lavished praise on rookie Afghanistan leg spinner Rashid Khan terming him a 'special talent'.
Rashid has already taken five wickets in two matches including a match-winning spell of three for 19 against Gujarat Lions in the second game.
"I have seen him only for a couple of days. We choose him because we saw him playing international cricket and bowling well against quality batsmen," Muralitharan said on the eve of Sunrisers Hyderabad's third Indian Premier League game against Mumbai Indians, in Mumbai.
Muralitharan, the highest wicket-taker in Tests and ODIs, observed that the teenager's ability to bowl quicker through the air made him difficult to score against in the T20 format.
"We thought he is something special and different than other leg spinners, because he bowled little bit quicker than the others and he has variations," he said.
"He has played his part in the first two matches and done well for us. It is a good sign and we thought he will do well and he is fulfilling our expectations," the legendary spinner, who scalped 800 Test wickets, said.
Asked about dearth of Sri Lankan players in the IPL, Murali rued that once they start producing quality players, who do well at the international level, they will be automatically picked by the franchises.
"Obviously, we don't have talent back home (in Sri Lanka). So actually, we are lacking (good players). We had great teams, great players but they all retired. New guys are coming up but until they perform, franchises won't pick them," Muralitharan said.
The spin wizard also hailed the contribution of IPL saying it has helped the development of Indian players.
For Muralitharan, the other T20 leagues in foreign countries like Australia's Big Bash or South Africa's upcoming T20 league won't make it big unless the top Indian players are allowed by the Board of Control for Cricket in India to participate in these tournaments.
"Whatever said and done, if Indians players are not going to playing in those tournaments, its not going to be a big hit. Because everyone wants Indian players, (otherwise) it won't have big impact as IPL," he stated.
