BENGALURU :Gujarat Titans spinner Rashid Khan acknowledged it had been a tough Indian Premier League (IPL) season for him and that he must control his line and length better.
Rashid, 26, is the face of Afghanistan cricket and is a sought-after name in franchise leagues across the world for his accurate bowling and useful batting down the order.
Although fast bowlers have fared better in this year’s 10-team league, Rashid’s seven wickets from 10 matches is far fewer than fellow Afghanistan spinner Noor Ahmed’s 15 from the same number of games for Chennai Super Kings.
Fellow Gujarat spinner R Sai Kishore has claimed 12 victims in 10 matches and Rashid has been more expensive as well, conceding 50 in three wicketless overs against Sunrisers Hyderabad on Friday.
“I watch my bowling and analyse it and it gives me a clear idea,” Rashid told an online press conference on Saturday.
“Even if you see my bowling yesterday, I didn’t bowl even 40 per cent of what I’ve been known for – (accurate) line and length.
“It was not that the batters played very good shots. It was about how I missed my line and length, and if I miss my line and length, any batter is going to score runs against me.”
The first Afghan player to feature in the IPL, Rashid finished second on the wickets charts in 2023 with 27, one fewer than Mohammed Shami’s 28.
Second-placed Gujarat beat Hyderabad to move closer to a playoff berth.
“The next game I play, I’ll just focus on hitting the right area consistently, and that’s something which will make me more effective,” Rashid said.
“Line and length remain very important for me, especially on wickets like these where you don’t get that kind of support and where it’s not spinning much.”
(Writing by Amlan Chakraborty; editing by Ed Osmond)
