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Manav Suthar couldn’t have made a better start to his international career. The young left-arm spinner grabbed his opportunity with both hands and produced an incredible performance on his debut to help India defeat Afghanistan by an innings and 300 runs in the one-off Test in Mullanpur.
In his debut match, Suthar looked completely fearless as the spinner took seven wickets in the entire innings and played a big role in India’s dominant win over Afghanistan in the one-off Test. Manav Suthar achieved great achievements in Test cricket.
What was most impressive was that the surface was not that helpful for the spinners, but Suthar still managed to take enough turn and trouble the batsmen with his accuracy and smart bowling.
Graeme Swann predicts a bright future for human improvement
Following his Player of the Match performance, former England spinner Graeme Swann was really impressed with Manav Suthar’s strong performance in his Test debut and believes that the youngster has the potential to become India’s next long-term left-arm spinner.
Graeme Swann said on Star Sports, “The instinct to come in and bowl is very good – he may not bat as well as Jadeja, but he can bat, and he has scored a first-class century; This really starts to bring up interesting selection issues, and that’s definitely one for the future.
The former England spinner believes that Suthar has shown qualities that are rarely seen in a player playing his first match in Test cricket. He said that the young players never looked under pressure and handled the situation with amazing confidence.
Graeme Swann backs Manav Suthar as Ravindra Jadeja’s successor
He also said that when Ravindran Jadeja retires from Test cricket, Suthar will be a permanent member of the playing eleven. However, Jadeja was the reason behind the delay in Suthar’s India debut.
Swann said, “When Ravindra Jadeja decides it’s time, he comes into the team as a left-arm spinner. Like Vaibhav Suryavanshi in the one-day game, you think, should he be in the qualification anyway, because that performance was one of a world-class spinner? It just wasn’t for a guy playing his first Test. Just trust me on that; he is born to play Test cricket.”
After his memorable spell against Afghanistan, Suthar had said, “It was a very surreal feeling. It has been my dream since the beginning to play for India and play Test cricket. So, it was an incredible moment for me and to be honest, it felt quite unreal.”
Suthar reveals the secret behind his memorable debut
Spinner Manav Suthar revealed that initially his main focus was to understand how the wicket was behaving. He relied on his basic delivery and focused on consistently bowling in the right areas, but once he adjusted, the spinner started using his variations and made his stock ball his winners.
Suthar also highlighted the importance of patience in Test cricket. He further added, “This is a format that requires a lot of patience. This is what I have learned – stay patient, stick to your plans and keep hitting the right areas consistently.”
After the one-off Test, India and Afghanistan will face each other in a three-match ODI series, starting on June 13 in Dharamsala, followed by the other two matches on June 17 and 20.
