Published: Apr 01, 2025, 06:35 PM (IST)
Edited: Apr 01, 2025, 06:35 PM (IST)
Mumbai Indians (MI) pacer Ashwani Kumar, who became the first Indian to take four wickets on IPL debut, is a “lot quicker than people recognise at first”, says his teammate Ryan Rickelton.
The left-arm seamer recorded brilliant figures of 4/24 on Monday to blow away Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) as MI emerged victorious for the first time in the ongoing season.
“He’s a lot quicker than I think people recognise at first, that’s a great attribute he has and he can swing the new ball,” Rickelton told the media following the match.
“He’s a lot quicker than you think and he rushes you a little bit lower as well. He’s a great addition obviously to the group and the wicket can suit him. Looking forward to seeing if he gets an opportunity with the new ball to see that other set of skills come through. He’s a nice find for MI and really looking forward to seeing how he goes,” Rickelton added.
Rickelton said the Punjab seamer, who had only played four senior T20 matches, four List A matches and two Ranji Trophy games before his IPL debut, executed his plans really well.
“I’ve played a few warm-up games with him, keeping (the wickets) to him and batting against him in the nets. He’s a really nice bowler. He can swing the new ball and he executed his plan really, really well,” Rickelton said.
“The group’s really happy for him. But yeah, it’s cool that he got an opportunity. The group’s really chuffed that he managed to get out of the match performance,” Rickelton added.
Rickelton himself contributed a lot to MI’s victory over KKR. The South African played an unbeaten knock of 62 runs from 41 deliveries as the Mumbai-based franchise cruised to the target of 117. The team will be looking to continue this form when they face-of against the Royal Challengers Bengaluru in their next IPL match on April 7.
