IPL 2022: Brett Lee compares Umran Malik with Waqar Younis

SunRisers Hyderabad pace sensation Umran Malik impressed one and all with his express speed in the Tata Indian Premier League 2022. Malik bowled consistently above 145 km/h mark and breathed down the neck of the opposition batters with his gun speed.

The right-arm fast bowler from Jammu and Kashmir scalped a total of 22 wickets in 14 matches for the Orange Army at an average of 20.18 and an economy rate of 9.03. Malik took giant strides as a youngster while playing under the tutelage of bowling mentor Dale Steyn and this performance would have certainly done him a lot of good.

Malik’s best spell of the tournament came against Gujarat Titans when he took 5-25 in his quota of four overs. But his efforts had went in vain as SRH lost that game after David Miller and Rahul Tewatia added the finishing touches.

After his splendid performance in Tata IPL 2022, Malik also received his maiden call-up in the Indian team for the five-match T20I series against South Africa.

Former Australian ace paceman Brett Lee compared Umran Malik’s run-up with former Pakistan captain Waqar Younis, who had a successful career.

“I am a big fan. I think Umran Malik has got a lot of pace to burn. He is a competitor, a top guy, who runs in like a lot of fast bowlers in the past. Waqar Younis is the person who comes to mind,” Brett Lee told ANI.

On the other hand, Lee also commented on Virat Kohli’s form. Kohli has been struggling to get going in the recent past and Lee feels the talisman should spend quality time with his family before the England tour.

“I am a massive Kohli fan like a lot of people in the world. I just hope that he really gets his opportunity. He just needs some time out. Spend some time with his family, get reset and hopefully, we can see him scoring some hundreds,” said Lee.

Kohli scored 341 runs in 16 matches for RCB at a below-par average of 22.73 and a strike rate of 115.98. The linchpin will look to get back into form in the one-off Test match against England.