The just concluded 2019 edition of Indian Premier League has brought to fore a battery of pace bowlers, who have the ability to turn the game around with their sheer speed. They are blessed with the ability to bowl at over 140 kmph, matching the likes of Javagal Srinath, Ashish Nehra and the great Kapil Dev. Put together as a team, they can convincingly trounce the opponents in any format of the game.
Here’s a look at India’s pace battery:
Jasprit Bumrah (25)
Mumbai Indians’ Bumrah registered an average bowling speed of over 140 kmph during the IPL, with the fastest delivery of 150.41 kmph.
His ability to bowl toe-crushing yorkers in the death overs also prevents batsmen from scoring freely off him.
Khaleel Ahmed (21)
Sunrisers Hyderabad’s Khaleel Ahmed bowls regularly at around 135 kmph, but is capable of crossing the 140 mark too. Khaleel, who plays for Rajasthan in domestic cricket, made his international debut in September 2018.
Bhuvneshwar Kumar (29)
Over the years, the Sunrisers Hyderabad spearheader has worked on his pace, and now consistently operates in the mid-to-high 130s, going above 140 on occasion.
Navdeep Saini (26)
Saini crossed the 150 kmph mark on several occasions in the 2019 IPL season while playing for Royal Challengers Bangalore. His fastest delivery touched 152.85 kmph. He plays for Delhi in domestic cricket.
Ishant Sharma (30)
Ishant, who has been playing international cricket for almost 12 years now, performed well for the Delhi Capitals in their run to the playoffs. He clocked in at 151.34 kmph this season.
Umesh Yadav (31)
Another Royal Challengers Bangalore pacer, Yadav, clocked his fastest delivery at 151.44 kmph. The majority of Yadav’s stock deliveries also crossed the 140 kmph mark. He plays for two-time Ranji Trophy champions Vidarbha.
Mohammed Shami (29)
Shami bowls consistently at around 140 kmph in international cricket but went past 150 for the Kings XI Punjab this season. The Bengal fast bowler, who shone at the last World Cup in 2015 with 17 wickets, clocked in at 150.65 kmph this season.
Prasidh Krishna (23)
He like the rest has been garnering attention for his ability to bowl above 140 kmph for the Kolkata Knight Riders. His fastest delivery this season was 150.22 kmph.
Hardik Pandya (25)
Mumbai Indians’ talisman Pandya is known for his explosive batting but is more than handy with the ball too. The Baroda all-rounder’s average bowling speed is little below 140 kmph, sometimes going above 145.
Avesh Khan (22)
Delhi Capitals’ Khan bowls regularly at 140kmph, and had touched 148.75 kmph in the last IPL season. The Madhya Pradesh pacer, however, did not feature regularly in this season of IPL.
