Arshdeep Singh can actually bowl well in all phases of the game: Parthiv Patel

Former Indian wicket-keeper bat Parthiv Patel showered praise on India’s pacer Arshdeep Singh, stating the left-arm seamer can bowl well in all phases of the game. While Singh can get the new ball to swing in the Powerplay overs, he can consistently hit the blockhole in the death overs.

Singh was able to successfully defend 25 runs in the final over against in-form Marco Jansen, who raced to a 16-ball fifty in the third T20I against India at the SuperSport Park, Centurion on Wednesday. 

The left-arm pacer provided the early breakthrough of Proteas opener Ryan Rickelton and then got the big wicket of Heinrich Klaasen before dismissing Jansen in the final over. Singh returned with impressive figures of 3-37 in his quota of four overs to help India register an 11-run win.

“He can actually bowl well in all phases of the game. We saw him bowl with the new ball. And he has improved his death bowling. He has got the variation of yorkers, plus he bowls his knuckle balls and he has got good bouncers as well. A lot of bowlers have variations, but the way he has been using his variations and the timing of those work really well,” said Patel on Sports18.

“He understands the game, he knows where his field is and he knows the strength of the other batters. He is using them to perfection. You know you are going to go for runs, but executing the difficult balls under pressure and keeping calm is I think Arshdeep’s strength,” he added.

Singh also leapfrogged Bhuvneshwar Kumar’s tally of 90 wickets in T20Is to become the most successful Indian bowler in the format. The 25-year-old has scalped 92 wickets in 59 T20Is at an average of 18.48.

The fourth T20I between India and South Africa will be played at the Wanderers Stadium, Johannesburg on Friday.