21-year-old tear-away pacer Mayank Yadav is the talk of the town after a stellar start to his IPL career that saw him claim two back-to-back Player of the Match awards – 3/27 and 3/14 against Punjab Kings and Royal Challengers Bengaluru, respectively – the first player ever to do so in the history of the Indian Premier League. And it is his sheer pace that has put him in the spotlight with calls of fast-tracking him to the national setup and some even floating the idea of Yadav being part of India’s T20 World Cup Squad later this year.
However, the right-fast bowler is keeping himself grounded and is just happy with the fact that he can showcase his abilities on the big stage. “I have said this a lot of times that since childhood [I was waiting] when will I be able to showcase my ability. And I never expected that I’d get such a good response. I never thought about it, but I feel very good,” Yadav said in an exclusive interview with CNN-News18.
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“I have one goal and that is to play for the country, and I want to serve as long as I can for my country. For now, I have no expectations of what will happen after the IPL; and there are people talking about the T20 World Cup [selection] and other series, but I have no such big expectations,” he said.
With his raw pace, Yadav has already etched his name in the IPL history books by bowling one of the fastest-ever deliveries recorded in the league’s history and is now the bowler with the most 155+ kmph deliveries bowled in the league.
In his second game against RCB Yadav clocked 156.7 kmph, days after he had bowled 155.8 kmph against PBKS bettering his own record for the fastest ball of IPL 2024. He’s now only the second Indian pacer after Umran Malik and fifth overall to go past the 156 kmph benchmark in the IPL. Yadav credits his hard work with honing his natural ability to bowl quick.
“I think it is my natural ability that I can generate this much pace; and you can push your natural ability to a limit, after that hard work is very necessary. I was blessed that I found people around me who were very helpful. They helped me a lot during my initial days.”
Talking about that particular delivery bowled at 156.7 kmph, Yadav said he was unaware that he had bowled the fastest delivery and got to know about it only after the match.
“I could not understand at that time because all my focus was on the match. After the match, 2-3 players told me about and then I realized that my speed was better than the last match.” He said, adding that he will be looking to bowl even faster.
“The more my speed increases, the better.”
Yadav’s pace was too hot to handle for anyone who faced him and Glenn Maxwell, one of the most destructive batters going around, got a taste of it when he was rushed on by a bouncer bowled by Yadav. Talking about his bowling mindset, Yadav revealed that his goal is always to dominate the batters and create pressure.
“I do not like if someone hits me for boundaries. My goal is, how big a batter it may be, I want to dominate them. And it’s not just now, it’s been like that since my childhood. I like creating pressure and I want to dominate every single time.”
Dale Steyn Inspiration
Yadav always dreamed of bowling quickly like his inspiration and idol Dale Steyn. The former South African pacer is regarded as one the best fast bowlers in the game.
“It was always clear that if I want to do something, I want to do fast bowling. My inspiration and idol are both the same – Dale Steyn. He is the only bowler whom I find had everything as a fast bowler – Pace, Action, Run-up, Skill.
However, bowling quickly is not easy on the body and like any fast bowler, Yadav has already put his body through and lot and has been hampered by injuries at an early age. As part of the LSG squad last year, Yadav was very close to making his IPL debut in 2022 before an injury derailed his and the team’s plans.
Injuries Delays IPL Debut
“Last year, I had an injury. I felt bad for a few days but I was not worried about myself. [Was thinking of my parents] how they might not feel good. I think whatever happens, good or bad, there is something good in it for you. Because of my injury I could not play in the last season, but if I had played in that season, you never know, I might not have performed well.
“Maybe I was not prepared enough for the last season. All the preparations of the past year can be seen in this season, that is why I am performing in this season.”
Yadav made his domestic debut for Delhi 2021 in List A and then went on to play his only First-class game in 2022. Hailing from the renowned Sonnet Club in West Delhi, Yadav’s name was doing the rounds and once he made it to the Delhi Ranji squad he got the opportunity to interact with India internationals and Delhi players Ishant Sharma and Navdeep Saini.
“When I made it to the Delhi team, Ishant bhaiya too had joined the team for the Ranji trophy. He knew about me – a 19-year-old boy who bowls fast and he always used to call me, used to make me bowl with him in the net practice. He told me a lot of things. And it helped me a lot with his guidance. Saini bhaiya’s guidance also helped me,” he said.
Handling Pressure
Having made a rollicking start, a lot more would be expected from Yadav in the coming game but the speedster has enough confidence that he will be able to deliver.
“After my debut, I put pressure on myself. [I know] everyone’s expectations would be high, but now that my performance in the matches have been good, my confidence is high,” concluded Yadav.
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