Shivam Dube shone with the ball as India crushed the United Arab Emirates by nine wickets in their Asia Cup clash on Wednesday. The all-rounder credited India’s bowling coach Morne Morkel for his success after picking up a career-best 3/4 in the UAE’s collapse to just 57 runs.
Dube said Morkel has been working closely with him since his return to the squad during the England series. “He told me to bowl slightly outside off-stump, worked on my slower ball, and even made small tweaks in my run-up. The head coach and captain had also told me my bowling would be important,” Dube explained.
India’s spinners also played their part, with Kuldeep Yadav taking four wickets as UAE folded for their lowest-ever T20 international score. India then chased down the target in just 4.3 overs.
Despite his recent rise with the ball, Dube dismissed comparisons with Hardik Pandya. “Hardik is like a brother. I learn from him because of his vast experience in IPL and international cricket. My focus is only on learning as much as I can,” he said.
India will now face arch-rivals Pakistan on Sunday in one of the tournament’s most anticipated matches, while the UAE will take on Oman in an effort to recover from their batting collapse.
UAE coach Lalchand Rajput admitted his batters struggled against India’s world-class attack. “They were overawed by the big names. We should have lasted 20 overs, but this is a learning process,” he said.
