Veteran spinner Anil Kumble has lavished praise on Monty Panesar,
saying the England left-arm bowler had quickly picked up nuances of spin
bowling since his debut 18 months ago.
"From the start, I liked him - he was steady, bowled with good control and
he maintained attacking lines. And in the 18 months since then, you can see he
has picked up the nuances of spin bowling very quickly," Kumble was quoted
as saying by the 'Daily Mirror' today.
Kumble, who has achieved the feat of claiming all 10 wickets
in an innings, said it was no surpise that Panesar was already a match-winner
for his team.
"It is no surprise to me that he has already been a match-winner
for England more than once, and I'm 100 per cent sure he has a long and successful
Test career ahead of him. How many wickets could he take? If he remains a part
of the team for 10 years, you are going to be talking hundreds, not dozens."
Kumble said what was more creditable was that Panesar performed after being
selected on the basis of an indoor practice session.
"For Monty to come through an audition and perform like
that was very creditable. I like to see spinners do well because we are a rare
breed and we have an important part to play in winning matches.
"I had never even heard of Monty before he came to Nagpur
last year, but he certainly made a big impression both through the way he bowled
and his celebration.
"You can only imagine the kind of joy he must have tasted
when he dismissed an exceptional player like Sachin Tendulkar to claim
his first Test wicket," he said.
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