‘Dravid never took credit, left Rohit and his players up front; Bumrah is a leader in Team India’: Paras Mhambrey

Paras Mhambrey was an integral part of the Indian coaching staff that played a crucial role in ending the country’s 11-year wait for an ICC title. Hindustan Times spoke to the former Indian bowling coach, who has finally been able to spend some time with his family after being away for three years. Mhambrey shared his experiences with Rahul Dravid and Rohit Sharma, his thoughts on what makes Jasprit Bumrah a natural leader, the evolution of Arshdeep Singh and Mohammed Siraj, the strength of India’s fast bowling unit and more…

Fragments…

Has the T20 World Cup victory become clear yet?

It took a while. It only happens once in your career, a once-in-a-lifetime moment. We couldn’t leave the Caribbean because of the cyclone. When we finally got back home, the first thing we did was meet the Prime Minister. And then we got an incredible reception in Mumbai. It showed us the way, what the Cup really meant to the nation. This victory was for all of us.

What worked for India in this World Cup?

In terms of preparation, I thought we were absolutely right. There was a lot of thought behind it. I would take you back to maybe the T20 World Cup in Australia. The way it ended there in the semi-final was obviously not pleasant. That was heartbreaking for us. From that point on, things changed for us. Everyone in the team, the support staff, Rahul (Dravid), Vicky (Vikram Rathour), Rohit (Sharma), myself and, you know, some of the senior guys saying, what is the way forward? What is our way forward from here? What do we need to do differently? We have been very consistent over the years. Getting to the semi-finals, the final. That shows we are playing good cricket. But we had to do something different to make sure we got that ICC trophy that had been eluding us for a long time.

It’s just the way people took up the challenge and said this is the way we want to go forward and then had everyone on board to believe that this was the right way for us was heartening. Unless and until you get every individual in that dressing room on the same page (it’s tough)… Every individual had the backing of the head coach and the captain. You have to take risks in this format. If you don’t, it’s going to be tough. But there’s always a chance that it won’t work out. But when you have the backing of the captain and the coach, you go out there fearlessly and play that game. I think that full support from Rahul and Rohit really made the difference.

How did the dressing room feel when South Africa needed 30 from 30 in the final with Miller and Klaasen still batting?

I would be lying if I said we were confident we would win the match. When you have a match where you have 30 balls, 30 to go, with six wickets in hand. And with one of the world’s best T20 batsmen, Heinrich Klaasen, batting, you can’t help but worry. The quality of the strokes he played was so impressive. We thought if this man batted another 12 or 15 balls, this match would be gone from us. We were a bit nervous. We desperately needed Klaasen’s wicket. Miller was there, but that would open up an end. We knew they didn’t have enough depth in their batting. When Hardik Pandya bowled that one ball, Klaasen thought he had four in the game, but he got an outside edge. That made Miller the only army. Credit to Rohit and the bowlers for handling the pressure.

Whenever India was under pressure, Rohit would throw the ball to Bumrah and he would deliver. How does he do that so often?

One word comes to mind, that is magic. He is brilliant, isn’t he? He is a once-in-a-generation bowler, there is no doubt about that. It is his skill and adaptability because he does it in all three formats, not just T20s. He is No. 1 in all three formats now. Having skills is one thing, but executing them every time is another. The credit goes to his routines off match days. If you look at his work ethic, you can see that he is extremely focused. The ability to bowl the right ball at the right time doesn’t come overnight. He does it nine times out of ten.

Does he have a negative bone in his body?

It’s just the confidence he has in his ability. He never doubts. You see that in the way you see him on the ground. And that comes from his leadership qualities. He’s a real leader in the team. You need someone like him. Someone who has so much experience, you want him to share that experience with the other kids around you. When I see Jasprit Bumrah, I see a leader on the ground.

Sometimes it’s easy to say a lot and not follow through. But he’s a guy who says it and then shows everyone how to do it. People on the team know he’s a guy who does what he says, and does what he says.

Talking about the next generation, how do you see Arshdeep Singh’s growth? Can he break into the Test team?

There is no reason why he shouldn’t be able to do that. When I first saw Arshdeep in U19 cricket, he was a strong lad who knew how to shape the ball. Pace is important, but getting the ball moving is crucial. Someone like Trent Boult has shown that at international level you don’t need express pace. If you can get the ball moving, you can be just as effective. I think Arsh has that ability.

And what about Siraj? Is he now India’s best all-format bowler after Bumrah?

One of the reasons he can keep going so much is his fitness. He can be with the batters day in and day out because of his great fitness regime. When he first came, he had a lot of control with the red ball but he wasn’t that consistent with the white ball. The margin for error is less in ODIs and T20Is. Hitting the length consistently was his plus point so he worked on that even in white-ball cricket.

Does India have enough punch in fast bowling?

I want to see how Prasidh (Krishna) progresses. That’s a name that comes to mind. He’s shown a lot of potential. Tall guy. He’s very different from the others. He hits hard on the ground. You need bowlers who can use different conditions. He’s a bowler who can be useful in Australia, South Africa and add a lot of variety to the attack.

There’s Kuldeep Sen. He’s got an x-factor. He’s another tall man with the ability to generate pace, but both he and Prasidh struggle with fitness.

Mayank Yadav is a recent case of someone who has taken the IPL by storm. Raw speed. Another guy with fitness issues. We need to manage them. Whatever I saw from Mohsin Khan, I was very impressed. A tall left-hander, generates a lot of bounce. Of course, Umran Malik is there too. Along with Avesh, Harshit, Mukesh and the others in the team, I think those are the guys we need to look out for.

How was it working with Rohit Sharma and Rahul Dravid?

My association with Rahul is long. I worked with him for India A, U19, NCA and finally Team India. That’s eight to nine years of interaction and understanding what the requirements are, what the vision is. I knew what Rahul wanted. As a coach, Rahul was never in the front, he was always behind (the players). That says a lot about the individual himself. There was a lot of emphasis on the players. It’s all about the players, never about him. He didn’t like to take credit. You always see him in the background. A legend of the game. But to be able to say, okay, I’m going to take a back seat and let the captain and the team take the forefront, is phenomenal.

With Rohit… I have been part of the MI team. I have had a lot of interaction. It is very important that your captain is on the same page. He was really involved with this team. He was present in every meeting. There was a lot of discussion in the general team meetings and during those discussions over breakfast. Rahul and Vicky used to go out for dinner. Rohit would sit down and have a casual chat. That builds trust and a bond with everyone. That happened on the ground. The relationship they have is not just off the field but also on the field. Very nice of Rohit to say that (by calling Dravid his work wife). Just so you know the impact Rahul has had on him.

How do you look back on your time as India’s bowling coach?

When I look back at the kind of people I’ve worked with, if I made 1% difference in that dressing room for that person, I think I’ve done a great job. You know, because you’re coming into an environment that’s already there, there’s a culture in that dressing room. You’ve got to understand what’s really going on around it. What’s the environment and what kind of impact can you make. If I can make that little bit of impact to already experienced bowlers like Bumrah, Ash, Jaddu… create that environment, then my job is done.

Now that I’m leaving the group, I’m happy with the bond I had with all of them, the team, the conversations, I’ll always remember the conversations I had with them. Of course there will be success and failure. You want to win a series, you want to win again, you lose again. But I think I’ll go back with happy memories.

What’s next for Paras Mhambrey?

Singing. Becoming a singer? No, no, no. I am not there yet. Yes, I wish I could say that, but no, right now I just want to spend time with my family. I have been away from home for over two decades. I just want to grab this opportunity to spend more time with my family. My son has become interested in cricket. So I want to work with him. He is just 17. But yes, in the near future you will see me playing in the IPL or other teams, whatever. I will be around somewhere.