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Former Australian cricketer and World Cup-winning coach Dav Whatmore on Sunday said fast bowler Umran Malik is a breath of fresh air in the world of pace bowling and expressed hope that the 22-year-old goes from strength to strength.
Whatmore, who arrived in Srinagar as part of a camp at a private school in Srinagar, said many youngsters from Jammu and Kashmir would like to emulate the pace sensation, who had a dream run with the ball in IPL 2022 with 22 wickets in 14 games at a strike rate of 13 for Sunrisers Hyderabad.
"Umran Malik is a breath of fresh air for the speed and pace bowling. He has been wonderful to the point that he was retained by his (IPL) franchise which is a big thing. I am sure there are a lot of youngsters in this state that would like to emulate Malik," said Whatmore, who has coached Pakistan, Sri Lanka, and Bangladesh among other teams.
He congratulated Malik for getting picked in the Indian team for the upcoming T20I series against South Africa next month.
"Let's hope he does well. Congratulations to him for being selected in the Indian squad. We all hope that he goes from strength to strength," Whatmore said.
Asked about his favourites for the IPL final to be played between Rajasthan Royals and Gujarat Titans on Sunday, Whatmore said it is difficult to pick a winner at this stage.
"I am not sure which way to go. There are good reasons for both to win the IPL. Maybe later in the day, I will have some leaning, but both are very very good teams," he said.
Whatmore, who was part of the Australian squad which played a match in Srinagar in 1979, expressed hope that his second visit to the valley would not be his last.
"I played a match here in 1979 when Australia toured India and there was a match in Srinagar. I remember that was the first game on the tour, so that was my first experience of Srinagar," he said. "That was wonderful. This is my second visit here and I hope it is not last."