The 18-year-old Kevin Koththigoda hasn’t seen Paul Adams play. In fact, until recently he had no idea how the former South African unorthodox spinner bowled in his heyday.
But throughout last week, all the young Sri Lankan spinner heard were comparisons with Adams.
Ever since the Sri Lanka under-19 team took the field in the Asia Cup in Kuala Lumpur, the cricketing fraternity has been busy analysing Kevin’s ‘froggy’ bowling action.
While most experts find his unorthodox action strikingly similar to Adams’, many in Sri Lankan cricketing circles have already touted him as the next big thing.
“I have never seen Adams bowl. For me, the action comes naturally. I did not do anything extra, nor did I follow anyone. It just happened,” Kevin tells The Hindu from his Galle residence on Thursday.
With the comparisons growing louder, a few days ago, Kevin browsed the Internet. And, he was quite surprised.
“I saw his videos lately just because everyone says that I am similar to him,” he says, quickly adding that his action is slightly different. “Unlike him, I bowl right arm. So, there is a big difference,” he says.
Earlier this year, he finished his studies from the Mahinda College and now, after making it to the U-19 side, Koththigoda hopes to break into the big league soon. “My only objective is to keep the ball in correct lines and do the variations at the right time.”
This is something he has learnt from Sri Lanka’s fast bowling coach, Chaminda Vaas. “This was his advice. I am trying to follow his instructions. I want to play the U-19 World Cup and get into the senior team as soon as possible,” he says.
The Asia Cup has given him all the attention and now as the dust settles, the young Sri Lankan hopes to let the red cherry do the talking.
