With Anshul Kamboj coming under a lot of fire due to an underwhelming Test debut against England in Manchester, World Cup winning captain Kapil Dev backed the youngster saying that he has the ability to succeed in the future. Kamboj took 1 wicket and conceded 89 runs in the 18 overs he bowled as the Indian bowling lineup looked toothless against the hosts who posted an imposing total of 660 runs in their first innings.
“What do you expect from a debutant, that he should take 10 wickets? You have to assess his potential. If he’s good enough, he will bounce back. Everyone is nervous when playing their first game. The result may not be ideal, but I believe the ability is there, and that’s more important,” Dev said on Saturday.
Kamboj was handed his maiden Test cap by former India wicket-keeper Deep Dasgupta ahead of the toss, making him only the 10th Indian to make his debut at Old Trafford and the first since Anil Kumble made his maiden appearance at the ground.
He was drafted into the scheme of things after the tall pacer had returned home last month following the India A tour to the UK. Kamboj sustained a shin injury there and has looked far from his best in the match where he replaced an injured Akash Deep.
He was elevated to earn his maiden Test cap this week after his impressive red-ball profile from the last domestic season. Since September 2024, Kamboj had reeled in 55 wickets in 11 matches, including a 10-wicket haul against Kerala in Lahli.
His Chennai teammate Ravichandran Ashwin, who had praised him a few days ago, said on Friday that could not decode the reason behind the depleted speeds on debut.
“I praised Anshul Kamboj yesterday, but I have to say that his bowling speeds were so low, I was quite surprised. I honestly hope he is okay, because he was bowling faster than this in the IPL. He looked like he was struggling a touch. All said and done, the only solution to this (injuries and inefficiency) is to be able to create a bigger pool of bowlers,” Ashwin said on his YouTube channel.
