Umran Malik Makes A Lukewarm Return To Professional Cricket After Long Injury Hiatus

Umran Malik returned to competitive cricket this domestic season after a long injury-induced hiatus, and the Buchi Babu tournament in Tamil Nadu was a great opportunity for him to get into the groove of first-class cricket ahead of the domestic season.

However, playing for Jammu & Kashmir against Odisha, Malik bowled only 14 overs in the game and managed three wickets in the course of the game, which Odisha won by 118 runs. 

Malik was quite effective in the first innings, picking up two wickets in two deliveries in his usual style. He is known to be quite quick in the air and skiddy off the pitch, which is what helped him play the Indian Premier League (IPL) and make his India debut. He used the same skills against Odisha and cleaned up opener Om T Munde by rushing him and inducing an inside edge that cleaned up his timber. On the next delivery, he bowled an even better delivery that came in at pace and penetrated the experienced Subhranshu Senapati’s defence and destroyed the stumps. 

It looked like Malik would run through Odisha at that stage; however, the Jammu & Kashmir (J&K) team management showed restraint in employing their express pacer, and Malik bowled just 10 overs in the first innings, where Odisha managed to score 314. 

In response, J&K managed to gain a 16-run lead as they scored 330. Odisha responded with 240 in the third innings, where Malik just bowled four overs. However, even in that short spell, he got opener Munde caught by substitute fielder Sunil Kumar. J&K weren’t chasing a big total in the fourth innings, but they ended their innings at 96/8 after which Odisha registered a fine victory by 118 runs in the game. 

While Malik bowled only 14 overs, he did show that he’s still good enough to beat batters by his pace and skiddy movement off the pitch. If he maintains his fitness this domestic season, it will be really interesting to see the damage he inflicts with his bowling.Â