What I learned bowling at India's best batters: ‘Rishabh Pant smashes every ball'
With no wins in eight Test matches at Edgbaston, India may consider Birmingham the last place they would choose to try to bounce back from being on the wrong end of England's second-largest run chase in Test history.
This is the task facing Shubman Gill's side following a chastening five-wicket defeat in the opening instalment of what is shaping up to be a classic series.
Advertisement
Losing hurt, but there were still positives to glean from Headingley, not least how a slice of cricket history was created by becoming the first India team to hit five centuries in the same Test match.
The irrepressible Rishabh Pant led the way with a ton in each innings, while Gill, in his first Test as captain, reached three figures along with Yashasvi Jaiswal and KL Rahul.
Considering India are supposed to be a top order in transition this year following the retirement of all-time greats Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma, many were taken aback by how easily the runs flowed in Leeds.
But not Abhay Negi, who plays as an all-rounder for New Farnley in the ECB Bradford League, one of the best amateur leagues in the country and where some players are paid. He spent the two days preceding the first Test bowling at the India squad as part of their preparations at Headingley.
'It was a great experience,' the 32-year-old tells The Athletic. 'I was there for four or five hours across the two days. I was nervous going.
'This is the national team. You are in front of all the names you see on TV, but then, I stuck to my usual thinking in that you all wear whites and there is no difference.
'So, I bowled what I wanted and that really helped me. I felt I bowled really well.'
Born in the north Indian state of Uttarakhand, Negi's big chance to bowl at the best came thanks to the close proximity of Headingley to New Farnley, the club he joined as their overseas player in April.
Four miles separate the two, so club officials contacted the Indian cricket hierarchy to ask if they required a net bowler, rather than overloading the players in the touring squad, during their time in West Yorkshire. Club cricketers are often brought in to help international teams prepare for Test matches.
The answer came back 'yes', which is how the pace bowler found himself reporting for duty at Headingley 48 hours before the Bharat Army, effectively India's supporters' club, did the same for Friday's opening day of a five-Test series.
Advertisement
With Wednesday's net session compulsory for the entire squad, Negi found himself bowling at most of India's big names. Pant was not among them due to being in the adjacent net, where slow left-armer Mayank Mishra — like Negi, an Indian native playing club cricket in England this summer with Cleethorpes in the ECB Yorkshire Southern Premier League — was among those bowling to one of the game's brightest talents.
'Pant is very similar in the nets to how he played in the Test match,' says Negi. 'He just wanted to smash every bowler out of the park. My friend Mayank was bowling to him.
'He defended just one ball and (after that) my friend was like, 'Oh, cheers, Pant'. And they both started laughing. Every bowler, he just took on. Such an exciting player.'
Another top-order batsman who caught Negi's eye in the nets was Gill, who, despite Thursday's session on the eve of the first Test being optional, insisted on spending as long as possible batting.
'I bowled quite a bit at Shubman Gill,' he says about the India captain, who hit a sublime 147 in the first innings. 'He looked very, very good. Batted for one hour and hit some really good shots.'
New Farnley's Barry Jackson Ground is rightly regarded as one of the best on the Yorkshire club cricket circuit.
There is a well-appointed clubhouse, with a bar that proves popular throughout the week with members, plus a sizeable pavilion opposite, which houses the dressing rooms and the scorebox. Seating is available around the boundary edge, including several tip-up seats that used to be found at Headingley.
When Yorkshire County Cricket Club decided to upgrade their facilities, New Farnley offered a home to not only a few rows of discarded seating, but also the sightscreens that today sit at either end.
To mark this recycling of facilities, a sign reading 'The Western Terrace' has been erected as a nod to one of cricket's more infamous stands four miles away at Headingley.
New Farnley have ambitions to match their impressive home. Under the financial backing and leadership of chairman John Baldwin, they sit on top of the Bradford League, one of five ECB Premier League competitions spread across Yorkshire.
Negi, having had three spells in English league cricket as an overseas player, joined for the 2025 season and made an immediate impression on debut with a wicket maiden in his first over, and the wickets have continued to fall, with 23 in 10 matches.
Advertisement
'The Bradford League is a very good standard of cricket,' says the pace bowler, whose three stints in England came with Fulwood and Broughton in the Northern Premier (2021), Hastings & St Leonards Priory in the Sussex League (2022), and Paignton in the Devon League (2024).
'This is my fourth year in England. The appeal is to play cricket, but the financial side helps. I love cricket and just want to play and improve my game.'
Negi follows a long line of distinguished Indian cricketers to appear in the Bradford League, including former Test players VVS Laxman (Hanging Heaton and Pudsey Congs), Dilip Vengsarkar (Hanging Heaton), Anil Kumble (Pudsey St Lawrence) and Wasim Jaffer (Spen Victoria).
He boasts decent first-class experience back home in India, having made his professional debut in 2018. He has spent the past three seasons with Uttarakhand in the Ranji Trophy, the premier domestic competition for state and regional teams in India.
It meant he had played competitively against three of India's XI in the first Test — opening batter Jaiswal, plus bowling duo Prasidh Krishna and Shardul Thakur — before facing them again in the nets.
'All the team were very good,' says Negi. 'Thanking me for going, asking where I had come from, where I play now. On the first day, everyone batted and bowled after starting with fielding as a warm-up. Then, I started bowling in the first net. This was at the bowlers, who wanted to bat.
'After being assessed and seeing I could bowl OK, I was switched to a net with the batters. They wanted a fast bowler because England have plenty of those.'
Asked if the India coaching staff had any specific instructions beforehand, such as whether to bowl on a certain line or length, Negi replies: 'No, nothing like that. All they wanted was the experience of (facing) a new bowler they didn't know.
'I wanted to give them a real-time experience because I have been here for two months. When I was at Headingley, the wicket was flat and it was really sunny. Knowing a couple of the players I'd played against before probably helped.
Advertisement
'Me and my mate Mayank were bowling constantly and it was such a good experience for both of us.'
Headingley wasn't the first time Negi had helped an international team warm up for a big Test series. When playing for Hastings in 2022, he was drafted in to bowl at the New Zealand team before their three-match series against England.
1st XI v 1st XI
1st XI 3/1 (1)
0.3: Negi to Tahirkheli, OUT
Kyme Tahirkheli b Abhay Negi 0 (3)https://t.co/I0mJdryzA6 pic.twitter.com/brO3U7RpJX
— New Farnley CC (@NewFarnleyCC) June 21, 2025
Even so, it's still quite the thing to get a chance to bowl at arguably cricket's greatest powerhouse.
'I'd spoken to Alex (Lilley), our captain,' adds Negi, whose wife Mounika plays cricket as a batter/wicketkeeper. 'John (Baldwin) as well. I'd found bowling at New Zealand a great experience, so they really helped me a lot this time by making contact with the Indian team.
'I have New Farnley to thank for this really great experience. I would say to anyone, and especially to a young player, if they get the chance to bowl at these top players, they really should go down and do it.
'Then you'll know things like, 'Where am I? How much work do I need to do?'. You are learning at any age. I learned so many things.'
Such as?
'The main thing being how you have to give everything in every ball,' replies Negi. 'Otherwise, one ball only has to be slightly wrong and it is gone. If I bowled a fraction short, I was punished.
'You also have to be on the stumps every single time or they will leave you. Trying to make you bowl fuller and then, bang, it is four runs, 'thank you very much'. The mindset is the big, big difference I found. That's why these guys are the very best.'
(Top photos: Negi, left, and Rahul; by Richard Sutcliffe/The Athletic, Getty Images)
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
41 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Liverpool agree fifth summer signing as transfer spree continues
Liverpool continue to be the busiest Premier League club in the transfer window after agreeing a deal for their fifth signing of the summer. The Merseyside outfit wasted little time in getting down to business after winning the title at a canter in 2024/25, suggesting they are not ready to rest on their laurels. Advertisement Jeremie Frimpong was the first to arrive at Anfield in a £29 million deal with Bayer Leverkusen, replacing right-back Trent Alexander-Arnold who joined Real Madrid on a free transfer. That preceded the blockbuster signing of Florian Wirtz from the same German club in a deal worth up to £116m, providing a major boost to Arne Slot's squad. Goalkeeper Armin Pecsi arrived from Puskas Akademia in a £3 million deal in early June after Caoimhín Kelleher moved to Brentford, while Milos Kerkez completed his £40m move from Bournemouth this week. Liverpool agree fifth summer signing as transfer spree continues The latest player to join the Reds' ranks is former Newcastle United shot stopper Freddie Woodman. Liverpool announced on Saturday that the goalkeeper had agreed to sign a contract with the club following the expiration of his deal at Preston North End later this month. Advertisement The 28-year-old will provide cover for Alisson Becker and Giorgi Mamardashvili, who arrives this summer after Liverpool agreed a £29m deal with Valencia last year. Importantly, Woodman is a homegrown player, meaning he won't take up one of Liverpool's 17 non-homegrown slots on the UEFA squad list. Liverpool have now spent £172m, which could rise to £188m, this summer, but they are still not done in the transfer window. They have also been linked with possible moves for Crystal Palace defender Marc Guehi and Newcastle United striker Alexander Isak. Read – RB Leipzig join chase for Liverpool midfielder See Also – Five Bundesliga players Premier League clubs should be interested in this summer Follow The Football Faithful on Social Media: Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube | TikTok
New York Times
an hour ago
- New York Times
Wimbledon storylines: Sabalenka and Gauff, Sinner and Alcaraz and no more line judges
If you would like to follow The Athletic's Wimbledon coverage, click here and follow our tennis page. Is Aryna Sabalenka and Coco Gauff's olive branch a sign of things on court? Is Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner's dominance of men's tennis about to go up another level? Is the disappearance of line judges going to cause more problems than solutions? And will the biggest battle at Wimbledon this fortnight be not on the court, but in it? Wimbledon 2025 promises to be a cracker. Here, The Athletic's tennis writers, Matt Futterman and Charlie Eccleshare, chart some of the key storylines to follow over the next fortnight. Sabalenka is having an outrageous season. She is constantly making finals. She has won tournaments in Brisbane, Miami and Madrid. She is more than 2,000 points ahead of world No. 2 Gauff in the WTA rankings race that counts points won this season. But it also hurts her that she doesn't have the three titles she wanted to win more than all the others: the Australian Open, the French Open and Indian Wells. (And Stuttgart. The one that comes with the Porsche. She really wanted to win the Porsche. And the lost the final there. Again.) Advertisement Sabalenka isn't great at losing, just like most champions. She finds it so crushing to lose these matches that while it's happening, while the world is watching, she's visibly miserable. She's yelling at herself. She's yelling at her box. Every champion who loses feels this way, and only some let it out. It makes Sabalenka one of the most compelling players on the tour, because fans — and her rivals' fans — live every moment with her like it's their career on the line. After losing to Gauff at Roland Garros, Sabalenka spoke, first on court and then in her news conference, about how horribly she played. She barely gave any credit to Gauff until after the event. Then she apologized for what she called her 'unprofessional' comments, then they came to Wimbledon and made a TikTok or two. Gauff said they were good, so the rest of the world should be too. Then Wimbledon posted that on their own social media, which came off more strangely. Should a tournament be casting its top seeds as best friends? Does the tennis world not want more rivalries? The grass suits Sabalenka. She's the favorite, hands down. She has the power for it, the serve and the movement, as well as her ever-evolving variety and touch and feel. She's only won Grand Slams on hard courts, and Wimbledon is the Grand Slam that completes a career, so the pressure is there, but she might be far enough ahead of her rivals not too matter. Gauff's forehand grip makes it very difficult for her to win on such a low-bouncing surface. Madison Keys, who beat Sabalenka in Australia, could trouble her. Markéta Vondroušová, a potential third-round opponent, beat Sabalenka in Berlin and has won Wimbledon before. The 2022, champion Elena Rybakina cannot be discounted. Iga Świątek, who uses a similar forehand grip to Gauff, has been making the Bad Homburg grass in Germany her living room this week. Advertisement And if Sabalenka does make the final, it's more likely than not that said final will be stressful, that she will not play a perfect match, because no one ever does. Can she win? And if she can't, can she redirect her energy away from the way it manifested in Melbourne, Indian Wells and Paris? Sabalenka is a big Novak Djokovic fan. Djokovic is an incredible winner — obviously, 24 Grand Slams. He's also an incredibly gracious loser, in public. That's taken as the thing to be in tennis — even if some needle is good for business and for the sport. Matt Futterman Remember what it was like to be a tennis fan this time of year between 2006 and 2008, when Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer played in the final of the French Open and Wimbledon for three consecutive years. Federer won the U.S. Open in each of those years, and the Australian Open in 2006 and 2007. It was an incredible rivalry and a testament to their dominance of the sport. It was great. Wasn't it? Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner have now won every Grand Slam since the start of 2024. It's great. Or is it? And if it isn't, can anyone who's going to be contending in three years (that means anyone not named Djokovic) do anything about it? This is the question that Holger Rune, Lorenzo Musetti, Jack Draper, Ben Shelton and some players even younger than them are going to have to start answering. Tennis, meanwhile, might have to get better acquainted with the difference between a player's ceiling and their current peak. Draper has won a Masters 1,000 title, the rung below a Grand Slam. So has Rune. So has Jakub Menšík. Musetti has been in a final at that level. Shelton reserves his best tennis for the majors. But it's João Fonseca who gets the most adulation, who looks the player best positioned to challenge the Alcaraz-Sinner duopoly despite never being ranked inside the top 50. Why? He's 18, sure, but Menšík is barely 19 and inside the top 20. Draper is No. 4 in the world. How can this Brazilian guy be the one compared to them? Now we get to ceilings. Alcaraz and Sinner finished inside the top 40 in their first full seasons on the main ATP Tour. Fonseca is on his way to something like that. He has a cannon forehand. He can direct his backhand down the line almost better than he hits it crosscourt. He can take rackets out of top-10 players' hands. Just not consistently yet, and he hasn't worked out how to grind reliably when his first plan doesn't work. Menšík and Learner Tien, who Fonseca beat to win the ATP Next Gen Finals last year, are more ready for deeper runs than Fonseca is for now. For the long term? The Brazilian is ready for the biggest things in the sport. Advertisement So is someone coming into disrupt this duopoly anytime soon? Or will Djokovic have to look at the younger generation and realize that, at least for now, he has to do it himself? To use a favorite phrase of Sinner and Alcaraz, 'Lets' see…' Matt Futterman When the supposedly impregnable electronic line calling (ELC) malfunctioned at the Eastbourne Open this week, the whoops of delight from the traditionalists might have been heard over the high winds on the UK's south coast. See, we told you. At the first sniff of technical trouble at Wimbledon, except something even more unabashed. For the first time in the event's 148-year history, it has dispensed with human line judges in favor of ELC, which is used at all ATP Tour-level and combined events and two of the other Grand Slams but is not immune to glitches. At Eastbourne last Monday, a misleading image disagreed with the system's call during a first set tiebreak between Fonseca and Zizou Bergs. Players are overwhelmingly in favour of ELC, because of how it removes doubt and takes away their need to self-officiate. Until this year, players had to challenge a call they disputed in a timely fashion, meaning that they had to think about their next shot, whether or not to challenge and what their opponent would do on their next shot all at once. If the technology does fail at Wimbledon, then each court will have a couple of match officials to step in, but assuming all goes to plan, players and fans will have to get used to a relatively bare court, with the elegantly dressed line judges who have been such a feature of Wimbledon throughout its long history absent. Will that absence be meaningful at this year's event, or will everyone get used to it very quickly and move on? Only time — and perhaps some dubious calls — will tell. Charlie Eccleshare Bubbling away in the background at this year's Wimbledon is the All England Lawn Tennis Club's (AELTC) ongoing legal battle over 39 new grass courts. It wants to construct them, including an 8,000-seat stadium, on the old Wimbledon Park golf course. Doing so would almost triple the size of Wimbledon's grounds and allow the AELTC to host qualifying on site, as the other three majors do. Advertisement The Greater London Authority (GLA) granted planning permission at a hearing in September 2024, but after appeals led by the Save Wimbledon Park (SWP) group, a judicial review will take place Tuesday July 8 and Wednesday July 9 of 2025, right in the heart of the tournament's second week. During the hearing, the AELTC and SWP will outline their arguments, with a decision expected a few weeks later. The case is proving to be a major headache for the AELTC, which is desperate to press on with its expansion plans. Not being able to host qualifying on site (and not being able to pull in the revenue that would come with that) sees it, it says, lose ground on the other three majors. At the pre-tournament briefing a couple of weeks ago, Wimbledon chair Debbie Jevans said that the need for the transformation 'becomes ever more apparent as we see our fellow Grand Slams staging fully integrated three-week events by welcoming many more spectators and staging charity and community events during the qualifying week and, crucially, providing the players with a stage benefiting their sporting excellence'. It feels like no Grand Slam is complete these days without high-level discussions going on in the background, and this year's Wimbledon will be no different. Charlie Eccleshare For only the second time since 2004, there will be no Andy Murray in either the singles or doubles draws. Last year's opening week — and most of its matches — was dominated by questions of whether he would be healthy enough to compete. Murray withdrew from the singles at the last minute on the first Tuesday, then he staggered through his men's doubles match with his brother Jamie two days later. On middle Saturday came Emma Raducanu's decision to jilt Murray at the altar of the mixed doubles event, with the Brit needing to rest her wrist for singles competition. It's probably a relief for all involved that there is no major Murray storyline this time around. Last year was a painful end in many respects, and the rest of the event got sucked into a vortex by its gravity. The statue of him, which will arrive on the grounds in time for 2027, will have to do stand in his stead: he is not planning to attend at this time. It will fall to one of the other Brits, like Raducanu and Draper, to step up in his absence. Charlie Eccleshare Tell us which storylines you are looking out for in the comments.
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Sidecar team running on adrenaline after TT record
Kieran Clarke (left) is one half of the sidecar team, pictured with his stepfather Eddy Wright [BBC/Cathy Minton] A sidecar racing duo who were crowned 'Best Newcomers' at the Isle of Man TT say they are still riding high on adrenaline after their success. Driver Kieran Clarke, from Tadcaster, and passenger Andrew Johnson finished fifth overall in the event, the highest ever place on a first-time appearance, hitting a top speed of 114.221mph (183km/h) in the process. Advertisement Mr Johnson, 41, described their experience as "crazy" and unlike any race the pair have previously competed in. "I should have learnt by now that when [Kieran] says we'll just go out, take it easy and see how it goes, that his version of taking it easy isn't the same as everyone else," he said. Reflecting on the experience, Mr Clarke, 28, added: "It's the adrenaline – we're probably three weeks post the Isle of Man and it's still pumping round your system, it's the strangest feeling." Sidecar racing is a two-person motorsport involving a three-wheel motorcycle with a sidecar, and requires both driver and a passenger to work closely together. Advertisement The passenger has to shift their weight according to the direction of travel, in order to keep the motorcycle's wheels touching the ground to maximise stability and speed. Mr Clarke and Mr Johnson's partnership started four years ago when they first competed together at an race meet at Brands Hatch.. However, they had known each other much longer, first meeting when Mr Clarke was eight and Mr Jackson was 21. Even after a crash last year, which temporarily hospitalised Mr Clarke, the pair have climbed the rankings and are currently second in the British Championship F2 FSRA, with four rounds to go. Advertisement The Isle of Man TT is one of the most well-known events in the motorsport calendar, and sidecar racing has been a part of the race programme since 1923. While they duo are well-versed in the demands of short circuit racing, the TT course was a completely different challenge to tackle, according to Mr Johnson. "The speed at which you're going on the TT course with the bumps and everything is crazy," he said. "You've got to have respect for the course, you've got to understand each other and you've got trust each other. "I trust Kieran with the handlebars and I wouldn't have raced with anybody else on that course." Advertisement The pair are currently focused on the remaining races in the British Championships, but said they were already anticipating a return to the Isle of Man in 2026. Speaking about what he loves so much about the adrenaline-fuelled sport, Mr Clarke added: "It's just the thrill, there's nothing else like it. "People have said to me, 'do you reckon jumping out a plane is just as exciting?' and I think you'd have to get out a big plane somewhere very high to make it equally as good." Listen to highlights from North Yorkshire on BBC Sounds, catch up with the latest episode of Look North. More on this story Related Internet Links
