Following Nathan Coulter-Nile’s injury mid-way through the season, Virat Kohli’s team Bengaluru had a big decision to make. In return, they decided to rope in South Africa’s veteran pacer Dale Steyn; a decision which has worked wonders for the team.
Arriving in a team struggling for form, Steyn helped his teammates in registering two back to back victories over the heavyweights like Kolkata and Chennai. Although he leaked runs against the former, his two-wicket haul against both the team proved out to be an instrumental jolt.
Having ruled out for the 2017 edition of the Indian T20 League owing to an injury, the 35-year-old’s fate didn’t back him during the auctions of subsequent seasons (2018 and 2019) as he went unsold. A glaring comeback, however, has been nothing short of a massive revelation as his arrival has made a huge impact in the Bengaluru dressing room.
Speaking ahead of his side’s fixture against Punjab at M. Chinnaswamy Stadium, Steyn – who has scalped four wickets in two games this season - explained how difficult it was for him to recover from his injury especially during this time in his career.
"I've been pretty fortunate that for the better part of 10 years I never had any injuries, Steyn told Hindustan Times.
"I was a pretty fit cricketer all my life and knew I would always come back. After a broken shoulder that took nearly a year to recover, I had rotten luck to come back and land on a foot hole, which was my bowling foot, and that required about three months. There’s a big World Cup coming up and I’ve been pretty fit and firing for the last one-and-a-half-years now.”
Bengaluru's bowling contingent has stepped up since Steyn's arrival, and the 35-year-old thinks all they needed was a senior figure to guide them home.
"I've watched them at the nets and they have had questions on how to swing the ball, what the mindset is. But I just think they needed somebody of senior stature to help them, to look up to," Steyn added.
"There are great bowlers, but in terms of IPL you are always looking for someone who has done phenomenally well; maybe to not just lead the attack but in terms of thinking, planning and everything like that. It’s nice to come in and it just feels like there’s almost a father-figure around…
"There are a lot of young fast bowlers who have immense talent but don’t know how to use it. In the last two games, the guys have really come out of their shell and bowled phenomenally well. It feels like there’s almost a relief… they don’t have to take any blame.”
