IPL 2021: Umran Malik clocks 153kmph, Kane Williamson calls him ‘special’ | Cricket News – Times of India

ABU DHABI: Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) captain Kane Williamson believes that pace sensation Umran Malik is special, after the Indian youngster clocked 153kmph to bowl the fastest delivery of Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021 against Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) at the Zayed Cricket Stadium in Abu Dhabi on Wednesday.
SRH held their nerve to defeat RCB by four runs. Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Jason Holder, Siddarth Kaul, Umran Malik and Rashid Khan picked one wicket each for Hyderabad, while Devdutt Padikkal and Glenn Maxwell played innings of 41 and 40 respectively for Bangalore.
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“He (Malik) 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,” said SRH skipper Williamson at the post-match presentation.
“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 (win) again on Friday.”
Jason Holder, the other senior member of the SRH team, said pace is Malik’s “biggest asset.”
“The first thing to mention is his pace; that is his biggest asset. He has been consistent in training and giving us a hard time in training. He is very hard to get hold of and has been deceiving the batters through his pace. That extra pace adds a boost to any bowling attack,” said Holder during a virtual post-match press conference.
“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,” Holder added.

Earlier, SRH were restricted to the score of 141/7 as Harshal Patel scalped three wickets while Dan Christian and George Garton returned with two and one respectively. Yuzvendra Chahal also bagged one wicket.
Jason Roy and Kane Williamson played innings of 44 and 31 respectively. But SRH’s middle-order failed to kick on after a 70-run partnership between Roy and Williamon.
“I was just trying to maximize the powerplay and the ball was holding on the surface. We (Roy and I) were fortunate to build a partnership and we knew things wouldn’t happen quickly from a bowling perspective, but we knew if we held our nerve and stay there for longer periods, we can build that pressure.

Williamson said the dismissal of Maxwell was the turning point.
“Game was getting tight and dismissing him (Maxwell) one way or the other was the key. They (RCB) are a fantastic side and even though we are not in contention (for playoffs), it was great to see the fight,” he concluded.
“It’s been a tough season and it’s great to see some of those small improvements. To see those small adjustments was good. We thought that the total was competitive and we saw that fight throughout the ball as well.