Ravi Bishnoi will become someone like Rashid Khan: Suresh Raina

Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], February 2 (ANI): Former Indian batter Suresh Raina said on Thursday that compatriot and spinner Ravi Bishnoi will become something like Afghanistan star Rashid Khan because of “his character and way of delivering the ball”.

Aakash Chopra, RP Singh, Robin Uthappa, Pragyan Ojha, Suresh Raina, and Parthiv Patel discussed the upcoming future cricketing stars on ‘Legends Lounge’ on JioCinema. The Indian Premier League has seen a battery of cricketers from across the world leave an indelible imprint on the shortest format of cricket.

But, as is the case with every sportsperson, even the best must cede ground to the younger lot with the passage of time. Aakash Chopra recognized this aptly, saying, “As the sun of a superstar sets, another one must rise.”

Raina named Arshdeep Singh first before explaining why he thinks Ravi Bishnoi deserves recognition among bowlers. “If you see all the big bowlers who have earned their stripes in Test cricket, I think Bishnoi with his character and way of delivering the ball, will become someone like Rashid Khan.”

Bishnoi had a great 2022. In his debut year and 10 matches, he took 16 wickets at an average of 17.12 and an economy rate of 7.08 with the best bowling figures of 4/16. Comparisons with Rashid are however huge as he has dominated T20 cricket in leagues worldwide and has 500 wickets in 371 matches, with the best bowling figures of 6/17 and an economy rate of 6.38.

Ojha named Abhishek Sharma as a star to watch out for, citing his all-rounder ability before explaining what makes Tilak Varma special. “He is from Hyderabad. I have seen his development since he was a kid. I am talking about him in U-15 and U-16 cricket and how hard he works. His schedule involves going to the ground at 6 AM and come home at 6 PM. He only takes a 30-45-minute lunch break. He is thoroughly dedicated.”

Abhishek had a standout IPL 2022 with Sunrisers Hyderabad, scoring 426 runs in 14 matches at an average of 30.42, with two fifties and the best score of 75*. He struck at a strike rate of 133.

Tilak also had a great IPL 2022 with Mumbai Indians. In 14 matches, he scored 397 runs at an average of 36.09, with two fifties with the best score of 61.

Uthappa also cited Varma’s potential while recognizing his standout performances for the Mumbai Indians last season. He named Mohsin Khan as his bowler of choice for his impressive fast bowling abilities despite his short run-up.

RP Singh praised Arshdeep and picked Yashasvi Jaiswal as a potential gen-next batsman. “If you look at his batting in the domestic circuit, you can tell there is something different about him. His game-reading sense, his batting technique, or his know-how of how to end a match. The good thing about him is that even if he makes 50, he is looking ahead at his 100.”

Patel wanted to name Varma for his choice of batter as well considering he has seen him bloom in the IPL, but decided to talk about Delhi Capitals’ batter Prithvi Shaw and Gujarat Titans’ bowler Yash Dayal.

“The way (Shaw) has been batting in domestic games, we can see he plays well. Questions have been raised about his fitness and if he overcomes all these doubts, I think he has an incredible future ahead of him. My choice for bowler is Yash Dayal. Good bowler. If there was a standout bowler last year, I think everyone could see it was Yash Dayal.”

Chopra recognized Yashasvi and Washington Sundar to close out the spirited discussion.