When it comes to unorthodox bowling actions in the game of cricket, Sri Lanka is the only team which boasts of a handful of examples. The league of mystery bowlers was led by legendary Muttiah Muralitharan and was later joined by Ajanta Mendis and Lasith Malinga. They were no less than ‘assassins’ who used to bamboozle the batsmen with their bowling actions. And recently, there is a new kid on the block and his name is Kevin Koththigoda.
Kevin was first spotted in the ongoing U-19 Youth Asia Cup in Malaysia. He debuted against Afghanistan and managed to pick a wicket. Sri Lanka won the game by 61-runs while the rival team was still figuring out his action.
Here’s the video:
Surprised? Let’s have a closer look at this action:
#YouthAsiaCup2017 | Kevin Koththigoda of Mahinda College, Galle who made his Sri Lanka U19s debut today was first spotted last year by @ThePapareSports for his uncharacteristic bowling action during the Murali Harmony Cup in Jaffna! @PaulAdams39 @OfficialSLC @MahelaJay pic.twitter.com/auLDFlvtrS
— Damith Weerasinghe (@Damith1994) November 11, 2017
After going through both the videos, die-hard cricket fans would relate Kevin’s action to that of South African spinner Paul Adams.
Former U-19 opener Dhammika Sudarshana, while speaking to a cricket website, stated that this action was never coached to Kevin. He said,
He has a very unusual action. It’s like that of Paul Adams. The action wasn’t coached or anything, it came naturally to him. Since his action is unique, the batsmen get confused. He is an excellent fielder and a decent batsman. He has got a very bright future ahead of him.
Apart from Paul Adams, there’s another bowler whose actions resembles that of Kevin’s. India’s Shivil Kaushik has a similar bowling action. He was seen in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2016 and in a few games in 2017. He represented Gujarat Lions which was led by Suresh Raina.
Well, Kevin debuted recently and he has to showcase more talent in order to don the national jersey. His talent was recognised when he took part in the Murali Harmony Cup held at Mahinda College in Galle. He was one of the key players in the team and helped his side lift the cup.
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