Zeeshan Ansari: 'India A and IPL exposure has made me a better leg-spinner

NEW DELHI: Zeeshan Ansari went six years in cricket's red-ball wilderness. After playing for Uttar Pradesh against Tamil Nadu in the Ranji Trophy in January 2020, the legspinner admitted that he found it difficult to bowl with the red cherry. The influx of T20 competitions had accustomed him to the white ball over the red. That time away ended when the 26-year-old earned a surprise call-up to the India A squad for the Sri Lanka tour. The comeback didn't get a dream Bollywood-esque start. He gave away 76 runs in 19 overs in the first innings in Galle. He was then hammered for 29 runs in the four overs he bowled in the second essay. The Lucknow-born leggie admitted that the comeback had been a 'little difficult'. He sees this as a learning curve, with the exposure making him a better bowler. "It was a good learning experience. I played red-ball cricket after so many years, and I got to learn a lot. There were a lot of good batsmen I was bowling against. The Sri Lankan batters are good players of spin. And I was also bowling with the Kookaburra ball for the first time. It was a different experience for me," he says. Interestingly, Zeeshan had garnered attention early in his career because of his exploits with the red ball. At the U-19 Cooch Behar Trophy in 2014-15, the UP player took 40 wickets, which helped him get into the 2016 U-19 World Cup squad. He picked up 30 wickets in the CK Nayudu Trophy in 2016-17 and was rewarded immediately as he was selected for the Ranji Trophy the following year. He made an impressive debut under the captaincy of Suresh Raina. Zeeshan picked up six wickets in the match but was dropped for the next fixture. In the next four seasons, he played four more games until 2020, before he was left in the wilderness.

Then, earlier this year, he got a surprise call-up first as a net bowler for the one-off Test against Afghanistan in Chandigarh, followed by his India A selection. A day before the Test match against Afghanistan, Ansari was seen having a long conversation with Team India head coach Gautam Gambhir. "Gautam sir just told me that I am doing well and should keep bowling like this, just as I have been. There is nothing else to think about. Just keep performing. It was a good conversation, and it boosted my confidence," he recalls. The exposure, Zeeshan feels, has made him a better bowler, and he has learnt more about his bowling and what exactly he needs to do to find more success. "I have now played in the IPL, gone with India A, met a lot of people and worked with some really good coaches. All of that has helped me understand my cricket better and learn what can work for me and what I need to do to be successful. For instance, I have realised that I need to bowl a little slower and put more revs on the ball. I have kept that in mind, and that is what I am working on," he says. "I learnt that you should bowl as much as you can with the red ball. Whatever variations you have, you should work on them well and then try to execute them in matches. The most important thing is repetition. Repetition is very important for a leg-spinner. I have practised so much that I am now able to bring variations into my googlies as well," he adds.

Zeeshan, who plays for Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) in the Indian Premier League (IPL), credits the UP T20 League for giving his career a new lease of life. "I feel my career has been made because of the UPT20 League. I wasn't playing much cricket and my name wasn't known anywhere. In the first season of the league, I won the Purple Cap with 24 wickets to my name, and that's when people started recognising me," he says. Zeeshan is still 26 and now, with selectors tracking his development closely, he will hopefully get more chances for his state team. This time around, he won't have to live in the wilderness.

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