India vs South Africa: Since I can’t bowl at express pace, I have to keep developing my skills: Harshal Patel

Harshal
had
made
his
India
debut
after
the
T20
World
Cup
last
November
and
more
than
six
months
into
international
cricket,
the
31-year-old
has
17
wickets
in
11
games
at
an
average
of
19.52.
Slower
pitches
suit
his
style
of
bowling
more
and
that
was
evident
in
the
last
two
games
after
the
hammering
he
got
on
a
true
Kotla
surface
in
the
series
opener.

Being
a
shrewd
operator,
Harshal
very
well
knows
how
to
remain
effective
under
extreme
pressure
despite
his
limitations.
“To
be
honest,
people
have
been
trying
to
anticipate
what
I
am
bowling
for
the
last
two
years
(in
IPL).
With
every
bowler
they
longer
they
play,
the
opposition
will
realise
what
the
bowlers
strengths
and
patterns
are.

“As
a
bowler
my
job
is
to
stay
one
step
ahead
of
them.
At
the
end
of
the
day
you
can
have
15
plans
but
on
a
particular
day
in
a
pressure
situation
if
you
don’t
go
out
and
execute
with
confidence,
everything
doesn’t
fall
in
place.
My
focus
is
on
trying
to
execute
the
best
possible
delivery
at
that
point
of
time,”
he
said
ahead
of
the
fourth
T20
against
South
Africa.

The
RCB
bowling
mainstay
relies
a
lot
on
his
variations
to
outsmart
the
batters
and
he
says
that
is
something
he
needs
to
constantly
develop.

“I
can’t
worry
about
pace
because
I
can’t
bowl
fast
as
Umran
Malik.
I
have
to
develop
skills
to
render
myself
effective
at
the
international
level.
I
have
never
been
an
express
fast
bowler
though
on
a
good
day
I
can
go
near
140
kmph.

“My
focus
has
always
been
to
develop
skills
around
my
bowling
and
whatever
limitations
and
advantages
I
have
in
my
bowling.
I
would
certainly
prefer
to
pay
on
slow
wickets.
It
gives
you
a
fighting
chance.
If
you
can
keep
playing
on
pitches
like
Delhi
it
can
hamper
your
confidence
a
little
bit.

“We
have
bowlers
who
can
bowl
on
all
pitches
but
it
brings
them
more
into
the
game
when
there
are
slightly
slower
pitches
and
slightly
bigger
ground
dimensions,”
he
said.