Is Mayank Yadav the real deal? Science, spirit and speed-sculptors seem to think so

When Pakistan stumbles upon 150 kph fast bowlers, its instinct is to fast-track them into the national team. India, meanwhile, is conservative. It is inclined to bring out cotton wool, preserve them and pray they remain injury free.

So when Lucknow SuperGiants bowler Mayank Yadav, 21, consistently carpet bombed the opposition with his 150kph plus strikes in the first two games of this IPL, two views floated around. Voices from Pakistan, and a few in India too, said ‘blood the boy into the Indian team’. His coaches in Delhi, though, appealed to show restraint.

The contrasting psyche of the two cricket-crazy neighbours has been shaped by the screaming disparity of their fast bowling stock over the years. Considered an exotic species in India; genuine quicks in Pakistan get produced on an industrial scale.

But for Pakistan the abundance of pace-wealth has come with a ‘resource curse,’ a term mostly used by economists to explain the fiscal and social vulnerability of oil-rich nations that put all their eggs in one basket. Perpetually hoping to discover the next Imran Khan and Wasim Akram who could be the saviours of their floundering national team, Pakistan shows blind faith in their young pacers while inadvertently raising the bar sky high for them.

So if a young left-armer shows speed and swing, he is given lateral entry into the national team, just like Akram.
Early international success makes him a captaincy contender, like Imran. That’s the story of Shaheen Afridi, till the decision-makers realised he isn’t in the same class as the two legends. At present he has lost that old sting, and captaincy too.

At the other end of the spectrum is India, known for their batsmen and spinners, where genuine speedsters are rare species. Viewed with skepticism, they don’t get early breaks and are not seen as captaincy material. Mayank as of now is a curiosity, not a national obsession. There are reasons – the country has seen many false dawns. Varun Aaron, Umesh Yadav and Umran Malik – to name a few. Though it’s early, Mayank has done enough to suggest that his career path might just be different from Umesh or Umran, or even Afridi.

Anecdotal evidence, expert observations and a general forensic of his body and mind, could be a more scientific way to judge an exciting new prospect. There are questions surrounding him but answers too.

Does Mayank Yadav have the junoon?

A story he recalled on a TV show hosted by one-time India u-19 batsman Manjot Kalra is a good start. Once the late Tarak Sinha, Ustadji to him and several India players, coaxed Mayank to attend a trial for the Services main team. A government job, steady income would have helped the boy in his teens who had given up on studies and whose father had a modest business. But Mayank’s dreams were bigger. The trajectory he fancied read like this – Delhi, India u-19, IPL, India.

Like any smart Delhi boy, Mayank decided to under-perform at the trials, bowling at 50 per cent of his speed. The plan didn’t work. It was his habit that failed him. Mayank would inadvertently let loose a few thunderbolts. It was enough for the Services coach to offer him a Navy job. The boy panicked, he sneaked out of the ground, got into an auto, ignored calls and reached home.

Later at night, the persistent Services official, not taking the young boy’s rejection kindly, would tell him: “Tu abhi tez daal raha hai but yeh speed life-long nahi rahegi. Jaldi yeh (speed) khatam ho jayegi, phir mai tere saamne aaunga … (You are bowling fast now but speed isn’t lifelong, this will be over soon and then I will be in front of you).” It was a scary and insensitive conversation that rattled Mayank. Despite the scare, the boy didn’t compromise or slow down. Speed remained his calling card, the master key that opened all doors for him. The Services coach might have to wait for the ‘I told you’ moment.

Is Mayank Yadav different from Umran Malik or Umesh?

Umran and Umesh clock high speeds but Mayank is different. For starters he is taller, he isn’t skiddy like the other two. Height is a distinct advantage for fast bowlers looking for wickets. The towering bowler with high release gets the ball to rise from uncomfortable lengths. The ball climbing towards the head of the batsman is the hardest to face. Mayank can get a 150 kph ball to seam-back sharply into a right-hander and follow their swaying torso. Anybody who attempts to pull these helmet-seeking 150kph missiles, is taking a big risk.

Batsmen generally mistime the horizontal bat shots and get caught in the circle – refer to dismissals of Jonny Bairstow and Glenn Maxwell. Early indications show Mayank has a more controlled and repeatable action that gives him the all important consistency. Umran and Umesh aren’t known for these virtues.

What do the experts say?

Pundits have been poring over his action this past week. Inside the Jio studio, Aussie great Brett Lee is with Exhibit A – a freeze frame of Mayank in the middle of his delivery stride, loading up to propel the ball as furiously as he can. Lee draws a straight line from the hand above the head and his toe. The linear symmetry is the classic requirement to bowl fast. This shows how the entire body is behind the ball.

Also in the studio is Lee’s mate – all-rounder Shane Watson. He pulls out Exhibit B. It has Mayank’s front leg touching the crease. That too is straight, like the hypotenuse of a right-angled triangle. The knee is locked, the ankle has been planted firmly. With the base firm on the ground, Mayank’s body pivots ahead with force. The stable position of the front foot, Watson says, catapults the body with full force and accelerates the ball.

Across the border too, Mayank is being watched minutely. Former Pakistan wicket-keeper Rashid Latif has a youtube show called Caught Behind where he talks about Mayank. Latif points to Mayank’s back leg when he is landing on the crease. He shows it is Mayank’s toe, not heel, that is in touch with the turf. This, he says, helps him to skim the surface and not break his run-up. This smooth transition from delivery stride to follow through gives the ball speed. “These are small things that differentiate a 157 kph bowler from a 150 kph bowler,” he says sagely. It’s too scientific not to agree.

It’s Lee’s prediction that would have gladdened Indian hearts. “If he put a bit of wrist behind the ball he can touch 160 kph,” he says as he snaps his wrist like a whip.

Does he have the temperament to excel?

This brings us to the second part of Mayank’s Services trial. Fast bowlers need to be mentally strong. As a rule, they have too many setbacks to deal with. White ball cricket can be heart-breaking, batsmen use their pace to hit sixes. There is also the eternal fear of how an injury can cut short their career. So when the Services coach told him that he might lose speed soon, Mayank was worried. The rejection of the job opportunity had also made his own coach angry. Ustadji’s silence was hard to bear. Soon the Covid times of disillusionment and uncertainty would follow.

That was the time the boy from West Delhi moved towards spirituality. He read Bhagwad Gita and tried to make sense of his life. But the decision to say no to the Services job would set him thinking. Mayank says it was only after he came across a Ratan Tata quote on social media that his life changed. “I read somewhere that Ratan Tata said ‘I don’t believe in taking right decisions, I take decisions then I make them right’. That clicked for me,” he says on the show.

Simple Google search of the quote throws up a Ratan Tata interview where the anchor asks him about the quote that inspired Mayank. The genial icon gives a smile and says he never said that. “I am sorry, I am going to upset you but FB and Twitter made up the statement”.

True resolve, genuine pace and a fake quote saved a career, and gave the country that rare fast bowler. Science and fate seem to agree, if not the blues for the World T20 June, he can be India’s spare pacer for the tour to Australia later this year. It would be unfair to take a call on Mayank based on generalisation, preconceived notions or the career paths of other 150 kph club members.

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