Historically, India has struggled with their bowling attack, particularly in the pace department. This was evident leading up to the 2015 World Cup when they faced a setback with the absence of their most experienced fast bowler, Ishant Sharma. Furthermore, there were concerns about Bhuvneshwar Kumar’s fitness as he had been India’s top pacer in the preceding two years.
Unpredictability, inexperience, and a lack of testing typified the surviving bowlers.
India’s success in the competition appeared to be mostly dependent on the performance of their hitters. However, the trio of developing prospects, Mohammed Shami, Umesh Yadav, and Mohit Sharma, adapted to the World Cup’s demands with ease.
These India pacers, headed by Umesh Yadav, were the team’s stars. Umesh and Shami were third and fourth on the list of most wicket-takers, with 18 and 17 wickets, respectively.
Umesh Yadav, in particular, performed admirably with the new ball. He preferred the pacy surfaces of Australia and commanded the bowling assault with zeal. With the exception of South Africa, he took wickets in virtually every World Cup encounter and provided MS Dhoni with the capacity to take wickets in the powerplay.
Umesh Yadav possessed the ability to curve the ball away from right-handers, and he employed the short ball to great advantage on the vast fields in Australia. He was always quick, and with his improved precision, he was a handful in the World Cup.
Umesh Yadav’s Remarkable Bowling Against Pakistan
He ended Pakistan’s pursuit in Adelaide with two wickets, dismissing Ahmed Shehzad and Sohaib Maqsood. Umesh was frugal and never let the batsmen put him under the microscope in the six overs he bowled against South Africa in the following match, giving out only 34 runs in six overs.
He attacked UAE with an aggressive stint on a fast bouncy track at WACA Perth, finishing with 2/15 runs in 6.3 overs. India’s fast bowlers were finding their rhythm and made things easy for the hitters.
The Men in Blue remained in Perth and faced the West Indies, with Umesh Yadav once again leading the way. He was outstanding with the new ball, dismissing the lower and middle orders for 42 runs in 10 overs.
In Hamilton, India then faced Zimbabwe. Umesh Yadav did not have a good game, posting figures of 1/34 in four overs. However, he was back in form against Zimbabwe in Ireland, finishing with 3/43.
India advanced to the quarter-finals, when they faced Bangladesh, where Umesh shone brightly. India scored 302 in 50 overs, led by Rohit Sharma’s century. Bangladesh needed a quick start on a proper batting ground, but they were halted in their tracks by the Indian fast bowlers.
Umesh scooped grabbed the crucial wicket of Tamim Iqbal and then returned later to shred India’s lower middle order, giving India a 109-run victory.
