Ishant gets some expert advice from erstwhile South Africa swing ace, Fanie de Villiers: You need a haircut, lad

Fanie de Villiers wants Ishant Sharma to have a haircut

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Fanie de Villiers wants Ishant Sharma to have a haircut

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Ishant gets some expert advice from erstwhile South Africa swing ace, Fanie de Villiers: You need a haircut, lad

India pacer Ishant Sharma appeals unsuccessfully against South African
captain Graeme Smith on Day Two of the opening Test at
Centurion yesterday. Pic/AFP

South Africa ended Day Two on 366 for two in their first innings in reply to India's 136. "As an Indian, will you be proud of this lad (Ishant)?" De Villiers asked. "Firstly, he needs to cut his hair. He doesn't look like a sportsperson to me," he said.

De Villiers reckoned Ishant needs to add a few yards of pace, and develop an out-swinger in order to succeed here: "He doesn't inspire confidence in me. At least Sreesanth has a natural out-swinger which can cause problems if there is swing in the air. But Ishant has a natural in-swinger that hardly troubles batsmen. His deliveries sit up nicely for batsmen to stroke through the on-side. I was impressed with him at first, but not anymore.u00a0

"India's bowlers are going to be kept on the field for lengthy sessions all through this tour," a rather cynical De Villiers added.

Taking stock of the proceedings, he said that India's bowlers must try to learn from the South Africans' bowling display on Day One: "To succeed in South Africa, you need to have pace and bounce. Ishant has the physique of a fast bowler, but he's not been receiving the best of advice. To do well here, you need to bowl a few short-pitched deliveries, and then use the full length delivery as a surprise option. That's exactly what Dale Steyn and Morne Morkel did on the first day," he said.

Speed, the key
Asked if Zaheer Khan would have made a difference to India's attack, De Villiers said: "Not if he bowls at 130 to 135 kmph. You need bowlers who generate pace and bounce here. The reason Sreesanth did well in Johannesburg four years ago was because it was a green top and assisted his seam movement.

Otherwise, pitches in South Africa are not the friendliest for swing and seam bowlers. You need to be able to bounce the batsmen out."u00a0 So, would he be interested in the role of India's bowling coach? "No way," he exclaimed.

Meanwhile, South Africa's former captain, Pollock blamed the lengths bowled by India's bowlers: "If you lack pace and bounce, the least a bowler can do is get the ball up more. In the morning, the lengths they bowled were too short.

"India are in big trouble," Pollock added. "I am sorry, but I just don't see this attack taking 20
wickets. Sreesanth is a very good bowler. I think he's a rhythm bowler. He should be more dangerous when he gets a wicket or two under his belt," he concluded.