Even a few months ago, Mukesh Kumar was far from being in the reckoning for a place in India’s Test squad. But the Bengal pacer has made steady progress in that direction with his recent performances.
Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) had enough time at their disposal to chase down a tricky target of 279, after Rest of India (ROI)’s second essay ended at 319. Qamran Iqbal and Shubham Khajuria had taken J&K off to a sound start, but after Akash Deep separated the opening pair, Mukesh (6/33) ran through the remaining batting order to help ROI win the Irani Cup clash by 167 runs in Srinagar on Sunday.
From 54 without loss, J&K could add just another 57, to be bundled out for 111.
Of course, Ravichandran Smaran’s 135 played a big role in helping ROI set a 270-plus target for the reigning Ranji Trophy champions. But if not for Mukesh’s spell and good support from his statemate and pace colleague Akash, the task could certainly have been tougher for the Rishabh Pant-led side.
Importantly, the performance in this just-concluded Irani Cup game comes at the right time for both Mukesh and Akash, who made his first competitive appearance in almost eight months after recovering from injury. The selectors will soon be getting down to finalise the India squad for the upcoming New Zealand Tests, and there’s a fair possibility that the pace duo will at least be discussed in the meeting.
For Mukesh, though, it’s all about continuity, especially with his consistency since this season’s Duleep Trophy. “When or whether I return to the Indian team is something that’s beyond my control, so I just don’t wish to think about that,” Mukesh, who last represented India in a T20I against Zimbabwe in Harare in July 2024, told The Telegraph late on Sunday evening from Srinagar.
“My priority at present is to do well for Bengal in the Ranji Trophy. Last season, because of a calf injury, I could play just three Ranji matches. So, this season, I want to perform as well as I can in Ranji, which is my only focus at the moment.”
Bengal begin their Ranji campaign against Delhi at the Bengal Cricket Ground in Kalyani on October 11.
What bodes well for Mukesh is that this spell of 6/33 came in a game that counts in Indian domestic cricket and also during a critical juncture for his team. A proper assessment would underline the kind of effort he has put in when it comes to accuracy, which is a testament to his 20 wickets in the four matches he has played so far in the ongoing domestic season.
Not to forget, all of these four matches happened on pitches that weren’t too pacer-friendly. Of late, except Jasprit Bumrah and, to an extent, Mohammed Siraj, performances of the other Indian quicks on flat, placid pitches haven’t been impressive.
“In Duleep Trophy, the wickets, including the one for the final in Chennai, were mostly on the flatter side. Here (in the Irani Cup), the wicket did assist quicks a little bit on the first two days, only to flatten out later.
“So, I had to be as accurate as I could on these surfaces. I tried to take the ball away from the batsmen and force them into playing a stroke,” Mukesh explained.
“During the pre-season, accuracy was the area I had laid maximum focus on, alongside fitness. I feel I have worked up a bit of extra pace, having worked on my fitness, and I did hit close to 140kmph in this game.
“But having said that, accuracy, I believe, is more important, given the kind of conditions we get to deal with more often than not.”
For a better pre-season, he had also spent close to a week in Bengaluru, working on his bowling. “Since it was raining in Calcutta (in August), I took permission from Laxmi (Bengal head coach Laxmi Ratan Shukla) and went to Bengaluru for some uninterrupted training. That, too, helped,” Mukesh stated.
Before the Irani Cup, Mukesh also played a county game for Nottinghamshire against Sussex in Hove, where he took a wicket.
Whether Mukesh will have more reasons to smile in the coming days remains to be seen. But to be fair to him, he certainly has done the hard yards.
In Bengal’s Ranji opener against Delhi, Mukesh and his pace colleagues may again have to bowl on an unresponsive surface. “
Brief scores: Rest of India 237 & 319 (Ravichandran Smaran 135). Jammu & Kashmir 278 & 111 (Mukesh Kumar 6/33, Akash Deep 3/25). Rest of India won by 167 runs.