Despite the agonizing wait for his Test debut, Arshdeep Singh claims that talking with fellow pacer Mohammed Siraj has helped him learn how to get through this “boring” time and prepare mentally for the Asia Cup.
Recently, he was in contention for the third seamer’s berth against England, but was unable to play in the fourth and fifth Test matches due to an untimely injury to his left thumb.
“Mentally in the last two months, I have learnt how to enjoy the boring time. In Test cricket or red-ball matches, there is a time when the work gets boring. Like the session after lunch, the ball doesn’t do anything… how can you enjoy that?,” Arshdeep said on the sidelines of the ongoing Duleep Trophy.
The left-arm bowler had to wait until the very end of the second day to secure his first wicket against the East Zone, even though he bowled very well for the North Zone.
It was the ideal opportunity for Arshdeep to implement Siraj’s advice.
What was Siraj’s tip, then?
“I spoke to Siraj, he told me that when nothing is happening, how you enjoy that phase will tell you how successful you can be in red-ball cricket. He gave me this small tip and I really liked it.
“The same thing happened here. They (East Zone) were just down four wickets and the ball wasn’t doing anything. So, that was the main motive… how to enjoy each other’s company. That’s how the results came,” he added.
“This game, I felt really good. The last couple of months I was with the (Indian) team, trained a lot, bowled a lot and worked a lot with the S&C (strength and conditioning). Here, I bowled a decent long spell, 17 overs. It is coming out well and the body felt well,” he detailed.
However, Arshdeep will be playing in the Asia Cup in the United Arab Emirates with a white ball in a week.
After training with red ball since the IPL 2025, would he be able to adjust to the demands of the T20 format?
Arshdeep has complete faith in his ability to adapt.
“It’s nothing like that. In the last Test (at the Oval against England), I started training with a white ball. I didn’t know that there was a Duleep Trophy match in between. The workload was properly managed.”
Prior to the continental showcase, Arshdeep stated that he is using the Duleep Trophy to get some practice overs under his belt.
“I don’t know how many thousands of balls I bowled in practice. There was no lack of bowling. At the end of the day, white or red ball, you just play.
“At the end of the day, you just have to play cricket and you have to enjoy it. I got a chance to play here and will next play with a white ball (Asia Cup). The aim is to have a lot of overs under the belt,” he noted.
However, having little playing time does not mean that Arshdeep is abandoning his routines; on the contrary, he has been working to broaden his skill set.
“You just put in more work when you are not playing. More overs, more strength work, more training so that whenever you get the chance, you are ready and fully fit to go.
“When you are not playing, you just try to push the limits and try to see what all you can achieve in your skills and physically as well,” he said.
The 26-year-old pacer believes that adaptability is all about understanding and responding to the demands of different formats.
“It depends on how quickly you adapt. In today’s cricket, a batsman can hit against the red ball and he can play conservatively against a white ball.
“So, it depends on how you can adapt according to the situation, according to the wicket, according to the weather, (you have to) decide when you have to put in effort and when you have to contain yourself. So (it is) just about how you can adapt,” he signed off.
