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Sunrisers Hyderabad's pace sensation Umran Malik clocked 152.95kph to bowl the fastest delivery of IPL 2021, during their match against Royal Challengers Bangalore in, Abu Dhabi, on Wednesday.
Malik achieved the feat off the fourth delivery of the ninth over, bowling against RCB opener Devdutt Padikkal, who edged the delivery and got a single. The pacer finished with good figures of 1/21 in his four overs, having claimed the wicket of KS Bharat.
The J&K fast bowler had become the first Indian to enter the Top-10 for the fastest delivery in IPL 2021, during SRH's match against Kolkata Knight Riders on Sunday. The 21-year-old clocked 146 kmph in his very first over, before going on to bowl 150kmph twice.
Malik has caught everyone's attention with his raw pace during the IPL. He got an opportunity after left-arm pacer Thangarasu Nataraj was ruled out of the second leg of IPL due to COVID-19.
His coach Randhir Singh said Malik has become the talk of the town for his ability to bowl so quick.
"He is very talented and after the match got over, Umran was the talk of the town. We are very proud of him. We want other youngsters also to get motivation from him," Randhir told ANI.
Umran's father Abdul Rashid said his son made Jammu and Kashmir and the entire country proud.
"We are receiving congratulations and wishes from many people. Lieutenant Governor also congratulated him for his success."
Rashid said his son was always interested in cricket and it has always been his passion to play for the country
"He was interested in cricket throughout. In childhood, he used to tell me, 'I will play cricket.' We are thankful, he got the opportunity in IPL," he said.
"We are always with him, we will pray to Allah for more success. He is very hardworking, when we used to go to bed he used to practice all night. Jammu and Kashmir people are very happy about his success. We also wish him the best time ahead and he should keep making the nation proud," he added.
Umran Malik certainly is special: Williamson
Sunrisers Hyderabad captain Kane Williamson hailed pace bowler Malik as a 'special talent'.
"He certainly is special. We saw him in the nets in the last couple of seasons and he is a real competitor and is proving to be effective even on slower surfaces. He's got a lot of mates in the team as well and that helps in sharing the knowledge. It's a great opportunity for the younger guys to get involved and hopefully we will keep learning and we go again on Friday," he added.
Sunrisers all-rounder Jason Holder said that Malik's biggest asset is his pace.
"The first thing to mention is his pace, that is his biggest asset. He has been consistent in training and he has been giving us a hard time in training. He is very hard to get hold of, he has been deceiving the batters through his pace and that extra pace adds a boost to any bowling attack," said the West Indian.
"It is good to see his control as well, a lot of guys who have bowled quick over the years, generally they can be erratic but he has been pretty consistent," he added.