Playing only in his second Test, Vivek Razdan took five wickets in an innings against Pakistan at Sialkot in 1989. He was 20 then, and promised much as a pace bowler.
But, he never played another Test.
“It was disappointing to have played only two Tests, but one could also see that glass as half-full; at least, I played for India, and that too at a time when there was such stiff competition in pace bowling,” Razdan told
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“That was the time when there were so many quality pace bowlers all over the country, as the MRF Pace Foundation had just been set up in Chennai.”
With Kapil and Manoj Prabhakar around, to even be considered for selection was difficult.
“Yes, we had an unusually large number of quick bowlers at the time: Javagal Srinath, Atul Wassan, Salil Ankola, who was remarkably fast, Prashant Vaidya, Subrato Banerjee, Rajeev Seth...,” he says. “We all benefited from training under Dennis Lillee at the MRF; he was an eye-opener for us.”
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While admitting his career would have taken a different turn had he got more opportunities, he is happy now, though, with his career as a television commentator.
Razdan, who is here with the BCCI TV team that is telecasting the Kerala-Hyderabad Ranji Trophy match on Star Sports , is pleased to see a new crop of talented pace bowlers emerging in India now.
“It is great to see two Indians bowling consistently above 140 kmph in a same Test match; I feel Umesh Yadav and Varun Aaron have to be taken care of properly,” he says.
“And we have Mohammed Shami, too. I hope nobody advises these guys to reduce their pace for the sake of control.”
He says he is impressed with Kerala’s Sandeep Warrier.
“He looks an excellent prospect,” he says. “He is nippy, gets good lift and moves the ball nicely too.”