Sunrisers Hyderabad young pace sensation Umran Malik got back amongst wickets when he helped his side win a close game against the Mumbai Indians at the Wankhede. Malik grabbed 3 wickets for 23 runs in this game, following his three-for vs KKR, and this win has kept SRH’s playoff hopes alive.
While Malik’s pace has got everyone excited – earlier this season he clocked 156.9 KPH, the second-fastest delivery ever recorded in the IPL – and now his famous chainsaw or punch celebration is also becoming synonymous with him; this chainsaw celebration was previously attributed to the likes of Dale Steyn and Brett Lee. Incidentally, Steyn, the SRH fast bowling coach, had a role to play in Malik picking up his celebration.
Speaking with teammate pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar after the game, Malik revealed the story behind his chainsaw or punch celebration style. He revealed that one day he saw Steyn doing this in the nets and liked it after he did it too.
“Ese hi hum net mai bowling kar re the, Dale Steyn umpire khade hote toh toh jab mai wicket leta to woh ese hi karte the, toh ek din maine bhi kiya toh aadat hi ban gayi ese karne ki,” Umran Malik said about his celebration.
Translation: “Earlier when I was bowling in the nets and Dale Steyn stood there. So whenever I took a wicket, he used to do this celebration. So one day I too did it and liked it and since then it has become my habit.”
Bhuvneshwar further queried Umran about the learnings from Steyn and his experience working alongside the legendary South African speedster.
Sharing his experience, the 22-year-old said, “I have plenty of help and learning from Dale sir. Because he is a legend and I have learnt a lot from him. If we are bowling for three hours in the nets then he will also stand with us for three hours.”
Malik, who made his IPL debut last year where he turned heads with his extreme pace in a couple of games, now has played his first full season. In 13 matches, he has taken 21 wickets but has at times been on the expensive side; he’s the fourth currently in the race for the Purple Cap.
SRH now have 12 points in 13 games – same as Punjab Kings and Kolkata Knight Riders – but have a poor net run rate of -0.230 which could go against them in case of a point-tied situation for the last playoff spot.
