Title: Four foreigners good enough in IPL

Desc:

BCCI will not be keen to have more foreigners, at least not for now and Wasim Akram thinks that's a good idea.

I understand some overseas players playing in the Indian Player League are suggesting that there should be more foreigners in the championship. Having seen the action from close this year, I think the current cap on four overseas players is a good idea.

The IPL is in its third edition and so far, the tournament has achieved its desired results. There is no need to tamper with the set formula and four foreigners per side is just fine. After all, the IPL was aimed at boosting Indian cricket and the BCCI will surely not allow more than four. May be after two-three editions, the doors can be opened to overseas players.

The business angle asides, any league must help a country develop its cricket. The IPL has exposed a lot many Indian juniors and the selectors already have plenty to choose from. Vinay Kumar of Bangalore is a glaring example. He has already made the national team.

Quite a few foreign players have made good money during the IPL auction. Now there have been questions about their worth. Deccan Chargers paid a fortune to get Kemar Roach, so did Kolkata to get Shane Bond.

Let’s say that Roach is an investment. The West Indian lad may not have played much for his country, but he has talent, pace and looks promising. IPL is tough. It is not easy, but if a franchise has the money and wants a certain player, it’s worth going for him.

At the end of the day, it’s not how a Roach bowls or how a Gayle bats. It depends how a team plays on a given day. Of course, you need luck, but in T20 there is little margin for error. Our win against Delhi at Eden is a case in point.

The Delhi victory has been a massive psychological boost for Knight Riders. We had to win this game after the shattering Mohali loss. And it was brilliant team effort that got us victory. Of course, Sourav Ganguly has been leading from the front, but it was the effort from our quick bowlers (Ajit) Agarkar and (Ashok) Dinda that made a massive difference.

In my opinion, Agarkar scalping Sehwag (bowled off an inside edge) was the turning point of the match. The way Sehwag was batting, I thought we would lose inside 19 overs, but then Agarkar produced that fuller ball just outside off-stump and Sehwag played a fatal cut.

The more I see Dinda, the more impressed I get. He has great attitude and willing to learn. Every ball he runs in hard and gives his best. That’s amazing. When a bowler tries so hard, it lifts the team. And yes, Agarkar will continue to be our ‘death’ bowler. Fit, nippy and experienced, Agarkar will always be in my first XI.

I must have grown a few grey hairs sitting in the KKR dugout. It’s been a new experience for me and I must say it is not always a great feeling sitting and watching your team lose. I have still not got used to it and yes, the tension on my and Dav Whatmore’s face has been palpable at times. In my 20 years of international cricket, I have never been so tensed.

I am sure Saturday will be another stressful day at Chinnaswamy. The Royal Challengers Bangalore are a tough team and their batsmen are in great form. Their top six are on a roll and we really have to bowl well. Kallis and Pietersen will be our prime targets but we have our guys too, who can match fire with fire. It should be a great contest and KKR will fight tooth and nail. Every game now is a sudden-death for us.
 

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