STALWART SPEAKS

Vinay Kumar: Karnataka's selfless war-horse

 •  Published on
"Youngsters coming and performing under me is what gives me a lot of satisfaction," said Vinay.
"Youngsters coming and performing under me is what gives me a lot of satisfaction," said Vinay. © Cricbuzz

"We were playing a Board President's XI game against England in Mumbai. James Anderson was bowling and I tonked him for a six. The very next over he came and stood in the slips and was telling me about how I was not bowling well in the IPL. I asked him why he doesn't play in IPL and his response was no 'I'm just a Test bowler.' 'Try your luck with IPL and then you'll come to know what it takes to bowl there' was my response to that. It was quite funny actually."

This was Vinay Kumar explaining one of the funniest sledging incidents he has been part of. This innocuous little instance is a part of the game but also provides insight into Vinay's character; a player who is not bogged down by situation, big names and is always ready to fight it out.

Vinay made his Test debut in 2012 and has played just one Test. The fourth ball of his career was deposited well over the long-on fence by David Warner. He had to wait for more than ten overs for his first Test wicket. India lost the game by an innings and 37 runs and the Karnataka pacer had a forgettable outing.

The morale-sapping loss could well have crushed the confidence of any other player but Vinay, keen to learn from the experience, moved on. His last appearance for the Indian team was at his home venue. Rohit Sharma scored his first double century in One-Day Internationals before India sealed a thrilling win over Australia. The outing for Vinay, however, was once again a forgettable one.

Since then, he has led Karnataka to two trebles, winning the Ranji Trophy, Vijay Hazare and Irani Cup in 2013-14 and 2014-15. In addition, he has groomed the likes of Abhimanyu Mithun, HS Sharath, S Aravind and other pacers into much better and promising bowlers.

Remind him about this and tell him about how he has now become the highest wicket-taker for Karnataka in Ranji Trophy, he'll happily ignore the second part. "Youngsters coming and performing under me is what gives me a lot of satisfaction," he tells Cricbuzz, in his typically understated manner.

Vinay understands pace isn't one of his weapons and he isn't shy of admitting that. He depends on accuracy and variations to outfox the batsmen. Since his Test debut, he has picked up 22, 39, 55 and 24 wickets in the last four domestic seasons respectively. In three of the four, his average has been less than 24.

However, it's never easy to play international cricket and come back to domestic cricket. The grind gets a lot tougher, and motivation to claw back doesn't come as easily as it does to some.

"When I started playing cricket, I started because I love this game," he starts. "I learnt a lot when I played for India in different formats but even when I'm are not part of the Indian team, even when I'm playing in Ranji Trophy, I'm still playing cricket. See, I still have a good four-five years of cricket and I believe I can come back to the Indian team. I know what my limitations are and I realise where I need to improve. I don't need to look elsewhere for motivation. It comes from within. If you are not motivated, you can't play cricket. It's that simple.

"At the end of the day, you play to keep your image intact. The people, the fans are looking at you to perform. It's all about when you have the ball in hand, you have to perform in any format. For me, self-motivation is very important."

When the spotlight is trained on him, Vinay isn't one of those who wants to talk a lot about himself. For most parts of the conversation, you are reminded of someone like Rahul Dravid. Team comes first is what Vinay has etched on his mind. It takes a little bit of prodding before he finally warms up to the conversation.

As we chat, the conversation turns towards captaincy. "Initially, when I took the captaincy, it was a bit difficult because I was worrying a lot," he reveals. "At times, I forgot to do my job. Gradually, I learnt that when I come into bowl, I'm a bowler first and then a captain. When I bowl, the team needs wickets from me and I need to get those wickets for the team. After I'm done, I'll think about other strategies.

"After a few years, I learnt how to manage things. I understood I need to keep performing to ask other players to perform. I knew if I give it my all, the players will follow that. I wanted to be the role model and didn't think too much about the results."

And what about bowling captains? Isn't that an advantage? Is the concept going away? "Most teams want a batsman as a captain but there are a lot of bowlers who have led from the front and led their team successfully," he says. "When a bowler becomes a captain, he would know exactly what the other bowlers want. The bowling captain knows their strength a little bit better, they know against which batsman the bowler be effective. Batting captains always have their ideas and the bowlers have theirs. At times, these may not match."

Over the years, Vinay has evolved as a player. While experience played its part, he believes playing in the Indian Premier League is what made him a better bowler. "I think IPL changed me as a bowler. Before the IPL, when I played for Karnataka, I performed but I would fail to capitalise on the key moments," he points out. "Sharing the dressing room with international cricketers, with players like Anil Kumble, Rahul Dravid and others, and that helped me learn a lot. I learnt how they prepared for the game, how they think and most importantly, I learnt how to cope with pressure moments.

"That changed me and helped me emerge as a better bowler. Bowling with the likes of (Dale) Steyn, (Jacques) Kallis, (Lasith) Malinga and others, that definitely helped."

As we wind up the conversation, one thing is clear - ask Vinay about his team and he can talk for hours. Put the focus on him and he's a man of few words. When Karnataka take on Jharkhand in their first game of the upcoming domestic season on October 6 in Chennai, the India cap won't be his first priority. How he can bowl his team to a win will.

That's what one would expect from the most successful Karnataka bowler in Ranji Trophy history.

©Reuters
ShareTweet

RELATED STORIES

COMMENTS

Move to top
seductrice.net
universo-virtual.com
buytrendz.net
thisforall.net
benchpressgains.com
qthzb.com
mindhunter9.com
dwjqp1.com
secure-signup.net
ahaayy.com
tressesindia.com
puresybian.com
krpano-chs.com
cre8workshop.com
hdkino.org
peixun021.com
qz786.com
utahperformingartscenter.org
worldqrmconference.com
shangyuwh.com
eejssdfsdfdfjsd.com
playminecraftfreeonline.com
trekvietnamtour.com
your-business-articles.com
essaywritingservice10.com
hindusamaaj.com
joggingvideo.com
wandercoups.com
wormblaster.net
tongchengchuyange0004.com
internetknowing.com
breachurch.com
peachesnginburlesque.com
dataarchitectoo.com
clientfunnelformula.com
30pps.com
cherylroll.com
ks2252.com
prowp.net
webmanicura.com
sofietsshotel.com
facetorch.com
nylawyerreview.com
apapromotions.com
shareparelli.com
goeaglepointe.com
thegreenmanpubphuket.com
karotorossian.com
publicsensor.com
taiwandefence.com
epcsur.com
southstills.com
tvtv98.com
thewellington-hotel.com
bccaipiao.com
colectoresindustrialesgs.com
shenanddcg.com
capriartfilmfestival.com
replicabreitlingsale.com
thaiamarinnewtoncorner.com
gkmcww.com
mbnkbj.com
andrewbrennandesign.com
cod54.com
luobinzhang.com
faithfirst.net
zjyc28.com
tongchengjinyeyouyue0004.com
nhuan6.com
kftz5k.com
oldgardensflowers.com
lightupthefloor.com
bahamamamas-stjohns.com
ly2818.com
905onthebay.com
fonemenu.com
notanothermovie.com
ukrainehighclassescort.com
meincmagazine.com
av-5858.com
yallerdawg.com
donkeythemovie.com
corporatehospitalitygroup.com
boboyy88.com
miteinander-lernen.com
dannayconsulting.com
officialtomsshoesoutletstore.com
forsale-amoxil-amoxicillin.net
generictadalafil-canada.net
guitarlessonseastlondon.com
lesliesrestaurants.com
mattyno9.com
nri-homeloans.com
rtgvisas-qatar.com
salbutamolventolinonline.net
sportsinjuries.info
wedsna.com
rgkntk.com
bkkmarketplace.com
zxqcwx.com
breakupprogram.com
boxcardc.com
unblockyoutubeindonesia.com
fabulousbookmark.com
beat-the.com
guatemala-sailfishing-vacations-charters.com
magie-marketing.com
kingstonliteracy.com
guitaraffinity.com
eurelookinggoodapparel.com
howtolosecheekfat.net
marioncma.org
oliviadavismusic.com
shantelcampbellrealestate.com
shopleborn13.com
topindiafree.com
v-visitors.net
djjky.com
053hh.com
originbluei.com
baucishotel.com
33kkn.com
intrinsiqresearch.com
mariaescort-kiev.com
mymaguk.com
sponsored4u.com
crimsonclass.com
bataillenavale.com
searchtile.com
ze-stribrnych-struh.com
zenithalhype.com
modalpkv.com
bouisset-lafforgue.com
useupload.com
37r.net
autoankauf-muenster.com
bantinbongda.net
bilgius.com
brabustermagazine.com
indigrow.org
miicrosofts.net
mysmiletravel.com
selinasims.com
spellcubesapp.com
usa-faction.com
hypoallergenicdogsnames.com
dailyupdatez.com
foodphotographyreviews.com
cricutcom-setup.com
chprowebdesign.com
katyrealty-kanepa.com
tasramar.com
bilgipinari.org
four-am.com
indiarepublicday.com
inquick-enbooks.com
iracmpi.com
kakaschoenen.com
lsm99flash.com
nana1255.com
ngen-niagara.com
technwzs.com
virtualonlinecasino1345.com
wallpapertop.net
casino-natali.com
iprofit-internet.com
denochemexicana.com
eventhalfkg.com
medcon-taiwan.com
life-himawari.com
myriamshomes.com
nightmarevue.com
healthandfitnesslives.com
androidnews-jp.com
allstarsru.com
bestofthebuckeyestate.com
bestofthefirststate.com
bestwireless7.com
britsmile.com
declarationintermittent.com
findhereall.com
jingyou888.com
lsm99deal.com
lsm99galaxy.com
moozatech.com
nuagh.com
patliyo.com
philomenamagikz.net
rckouba.net
saturnunipessoallda.com
tallahasseefrolics.com
thematurehardcore.net
totalenvironment-inthatquietearth.com
velislavakaymakanova.com
vermontenergetic.com
kakakpintar.com
begorgeouslady.com
1800birks4u.com
2wheelstogo.com
6strip4you.com
bigdata-world.net
emailandco.net
gacapal.com
jharpost.com
krishnaastro.com
lsm99credit.com
mascalzonicampani.com
sitemapxml.org
thecityslums.net
topagh.com
flairnetwebdesign.com
rajasthancarservices.com
bangkaeair.com
beneventocoupon.com
noternet.org
oqtive.com
smilebrightrx.com
decollage-etiquette.com
1millionbestdownloads.com
7658.info
bidbass.com
devlopworldtech.com
digitalmarketingrajkot.com
fluginfo.net
naqlafshk.com
passion-decouverte.com
playsirius.com
spacceleratorintl.com
stikyballs.com
top10way.com
yokidsyogurt.com
zszyhl.com
16firthcrescent.com
abogadolaboralistamd.com
apk2wap.com
aromacremeria.com
banparacard.com
bosmanraws.com
businessproviderblog.com
caltonosa.com
calvaryrevivalchurch.org
chastenedsoulwithabrokenheart.com
cheminotsgardcevennes.com
cooksspot.com
cqxzpt.com
deesywig.com
deltacartoonmaps.com
despixelsetdeshommes.com
duocoracaobrasileiro.com
fareshopbd.com
goodpainspills.com
hemendekor.com
kobisitecdn.com
makaigoods.com
mgs1454.com
piccadillyresidences.com
radiolaondafresca.com
rubendorf.com
searchengineimprov.com
sellmyhrvahome.com
shugahouseessentials.com
sonihullquad.com
subtractkilos.com
valeriekelmansky.com
vipasdigitalmarketing.com
voolivrerj.com
zeelonggroup.com
1015southrockhill.com
10x10b.com
111-online-casinos.com
191cb.com
3665arpentunitd.com
aitesonics.com
bag-shokunin.com
brightotech.com
communication-digitale-services.com
covoakland.org
dariaprimapack.com
freefortniteaccountss.com
gatebizglobal.com
global1entertainmentnews.com
greatytene.com
hiroshiwakita.com
iktodaypk.com
jahatsakong.com
meadowbrookgolfgroup.com
newsbharati.net
platinumstudiosdesign.com
slotxogamesplay.com
strikestaruk.com
trucosdefortnite.com
ufabetrune.com
weddedtowhitmore.com
12940brycecanyonunitb.com
1311dietrichoaks.com
2monarchtraceunit303.com
601legendhill.com
850elaine.com
adieusolasomade.com
andora-ke.com
bestslotxogames.com
cannagomcallen.com
endlesslyhot.com
iestpjva.com
ouqprint.com
pwmaplefest.com
qtylmr.com
rb88betting.com
buscadogues.com
1007macfm.com
born-wild.com
growthinvests.com
promocode-casino.com
proyectogalgoargentina.com
wbthompson-art.com
whitemountainwheels.com
7thavehvl.com
developmethis.com
funkydogbowties.com
travelodgegrandjunction.com
gao-town.com
globalmarketsuite.com
blogshippo.com
hdbka.com
proboards67.com
outletonline-michaelkors.com
kalkis-research.com
thuthuatit.net
buckcash.com
hollistercanada.com
docterror.com
asadart.com
vmayke.org
erwincomputers.com
dirimart.org
okkii.com
loteriasdecehegin.com
mountanalog.com
healingtaobritain.com
ttxmonitor.com
nwordpress.com
11bolabonanza.com