Chennai:

Former India skipper Sunil Gavaskar feels that the presence of pace ace Zaheer Khan would help the inexperienced quickies in the much-awaited IndiaSouth Africa Test series.

“Zaheer’s return is a blessing for India. Even if he doesn’t pick too many wickets, it will be a big plus for the likes of Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Mohammed Shami, Umesh Yadav and Ishant Sharma to have Zaheer around because he will be the one to give them those little tips that can be so handy . In the pressure of a Test match, sometimes all you need is a little word and not a long lecture. Zaheer is capable of doing that very well,“ Gavaskar told the BCCI website.

Gavaskar said that the battle between Zaheer and Graeme Smith would be an intriguing one. “Zaheer has that confidence against Smith and that will give him an upper-hand.

However, Smith is a worldclass batsman and will be out there to prove that he is not Zaheer’s bunny,“ added Gavaskar.

“This series is going to be very crucial for R. Ashwin.

Since he has played most of his cricket at home, he is used to getting wickets reg ularly in helpful conditions. Here he will have to rely on flight and variation as there won’t be much spin on offer. He will also have to be much more patient and assume the role of a stock bowler for Dhoni who could keep the pressure from one end and allow the strike bowlers to pick wickets from the other end. Also, don’t forget that he can bat too,“ said Gavaskar.

The 64-year-old former opening batsman also stated that it is a great opportunity for the next generation batsmen to rise to the occasion.

“We need to be patient with them and give them the time to settle down. Once you know they have the ability, you need to stand by them. We have seen that with Virat and Rohit,“ and added: “For me the biggest strength of this Indian batting is the fact that most of them can change gears when required.“

source: http://www.deccanchronicle.com / Deccan Chronicle / Home> Sports> Cricket / DC / December 16th, 2013