Shivam Dube: Hopping out of Hardik Pandya’s shadow, one skill at a time

There is no one like a fully fit Pandya. But the closest to a fully-fit Pandya, is Dube.

The numbers are impressive. In 45 T20Is–only one which India had lost–he wields a batting average of 27.59 and a strike rate of 138.26. Every sixth ball reaches the fence. Among the top 10 all-rounders in the world, only three have a better batting average (Pandya, Marcus Stoinis and Nepal’s Deepenedra Singh Airee) and only two with a better strike rate (Pandya and Stoinis). In the bowling list, Dube occupies the 22nd spot, beneath Axar Patel, and surprisingly, Abhishek Sharma. The modest bowling figures tell you why. Just 21 wickets in 31 outings.

It’s where the rankings and numbers don’t capture his resurgence as a bowler. As many as 13 of those wickets have come in the last 10 outings with the ball, a wicket every 17th run he has conceded and 12th ball he has bowled. In half of those instances, he bowled three or more overs, illustrating the team manager’s swelling trust in his bowling skills.

At Wankhede early this year, he conjured a delightful away-seamer to induce a nick off Phil Salt, England’s T20 pin-up boy. In Gold Coast, his hard length ball bounced more than Tim David judged, soon after he had crashed a wide ball for a four. The extra bounce hustled him into the pull. An off-cutter deceived Sahibzada Farhan in Dubai. All three wickets owed to different dimensions of his bowling. It’s a baffling knack–to look banal with one ball and a brute with the next.

The affliction for a loosener or two remains, but indiscipline aside, he has upgraded his skill set. Beginning with energy in his run-up and intensity in his action to shored-up pace and a steadier wrist at release, his upskilling is perceptible. It’s the fruits of his labour in the nets, he would confess during the Asia Cup in Dubai. He rarely missed the practice sessions, even the optional ones, and would bowl as long as he possibly could. “I have worked on small tips from coach and bowling coach,” he said in Gold Coast. Like bowling from wide of the crease and using the angles. Like knowing when to bowl the slower balls. “Little things,” he would repeat.

Most noticeable has been his pace. He clocked mid-130 kph when he burst forth, before it dropped to mid 120s owing to injuries. But in the last two series, his effort balls have clocked 130kphs, the average speed in the early 130s. The ability to bowl quicker had made his slower balls deadlier. He has learned to use those variations sparingly, rather than looking to bowl one twice or thrice in an over. He has added the off-cutter, too. He can take the new-ball or bowl in the middle overs. He has shed his nervousness with the ball, and looks like someone enjoying his game.

He has shed the fear of getting hit too. “Gauti bhai told me — ‘You will concede runs, but I want you to express yourself.’ That freedom has changed everything,” he said. So he is not afraid to fail or leak runs. The upgraded bowling repertoire affords India to slot him as a genuine bowler, the third seamer to Jasprit Bumrah and Pandya. Three spin-bowling and two seam-bowling all-rounders. The multitasking depth is frightening.

The 32-year-old might not get to bat as frequently as he once did. In the last 16 games, he has batted only 10 times. Half of the times, he has strode out at six, once at eight, twice at five and in Gold Coast at three. Bowlers promptly summon the short ball. While he still hops at those spearing into his body, he doesn’t spare anything short on the off-side. When Ben Dwarshuis tested his off-side aptitude with a hard length ball angling away, he emphatically slashed it behind point, riding the bounce and sweet-spotting the ball.

His cameos have come in big games. His 33 off 22 balls against Pakistan in the Asia Cup final was pivotal in India lifting the trophy; as was his 53 off 34 balls against England on a slowish surface in Pune. More than the sheer weight of runs or wickets, his contributions at dicey junctures have been precious. It’s the golden metric in the shortest format, impact and not the numbers. Dube, thus, has evolved to such a level that even when Pandya returns he could command a space of his own.