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T20 World Cup: South Africa pacer Lungi Ngidi, who tormented India in the Super-Eight clash, attributes his development to his 2018 IPL stint with Chennai Super Kings, where he honed his skills under the guidance of DJ Bravo, a master of T20 pace variations.
Ngidi's 2018 CSK stint was marked by limited game time, but it proved pivotal as he refined his craft under Dwayne Bravo's mentorship.
Ngidi's skilful display against India, yielding 0/15 in four overs with 10 dot balls, showcased deftly mixed wide yorkers and other deceptive deliveries.
India captain Suryakumar Yadav laboured to anticipate Ngidi's deliveries, often readying for an off-cutter only to face a different variation.
"Like I've always said, I was at the IPL in 2018 with Bravo, and that entire IPL, that's all I worked on. I wasn't playing, so I got time to practice it. And then when I got back to South Africa, I just tried to perfect that ball,” Ngidi said as quoted by PTI.
"Whether it's a slow ball yorker, or back of length or slow ball bouncer. So three different lengths with the same ball. I guess you've got to guess which one's coming next," he said.
Ngidi admitted that his relative anonymity works to his benefit, allowing him to bowl without being totally analysed by opponents.
"I think probably just flying under the radar. So not many people pay attention to me. But I guess that helps me in terms of being able to us all these variations," he said.
Explaining his approach against India, he said, "And then tonight, I used my leg cutter because I know that they're obviously probably preparing for just an off-cutter. I could see Surya set up as well, looking to sort of just lift it over the leg side. So just to show him something different, keep him guessing. And that seemed to work pretty well."