da gbg bet： This is Zimbabwean left-arm spinner Raymond Price’s first trip toIndia
Staff Reporter24-Feb-2002This is Zimbabwean left-arm spinner Raymond Price’s first trip toIndia. After being mauled in the tour opener by the BoardPresident’s XI batsmen, Price has bounced back admirably in thefirst Test against India at Nagpur. Bowling a disciplined lineand length, Price was able to win the praise of the master,Sachin Tendulkar, himself.A cricketer who wants to learn and grow with every match, theZimbabwean left-arm spinner feels that this tour of India wouldhelp his learning process enormously. In an exclusive interviewto CricInfo, Price talked on a range of topics – from hisfirst coach to the present tour of India.”I learnt cricket from my dad, Tim Price. He was an off-spinnerand a professional golfer,” Price said. His father’s lessonsproved invaluable during his formative years and helped turn theyounger Price into a useful spinner.The Zimbabwe spinner, though, admits that he has still has a lotto learn about the art and is eagerly awaiting the day when hecan meet Bishen Singh Bedi. “Though I’ve never seen Bedi bowl onthe field, his television recordings have more than impressed me.He is the person I would like to meet and learn from, when we arein Delhi for the second Test,” Price said. Daniel Vettori, theleft-arm spinner from New Zealand, is another man he admires andhopes to emulate.With Paul Strang quitting the game and Brian Murphy nursing aninjury, Price had to shoulder the responsibilities of beingZimbabwe’s lone specialist spinner. And he measured up to thetask during the Indian innings, claiming four of the five wicketsto fall by the end of the third day’s play.Sachin Tendulkar, however, seemed to have mastered him and therest of the Zimbabwean attack. Expressing his views on theworld’s best batsman, Price said, “Sachin batted well…As heusually does.”Recollecting his first encounter with Tendulkar in a warm-up gamein Zimbabwe, Price said, “I was just 18. Since then I’ve alwaysadmired this man. A batsman of the highest order indeed.”Moving on to the Indian bowlers, Price felt Kumble was the bestof the lot. “He is fast and God knows what he his. But what Iknow is he’s dangerous,” he admitted candidly.Despite being a spinner primarily, Price takes his battingseriously. His ninth wicket stand with Travis Friend amplydemonstrated the 24-year-old’s fighting spirit. Hit on the chestby a Zaheer Khan beamer on Friday, Price recovered to score 18valuable runs before a sad misunderstanding with Friend cost himhis wicket. The Zimbabwean spinner was quick to stress the factthat he bore no grudge against Zaheer for bowling what was anunintentional delivery. “Zaheer has been a good friend of minefor quite some time. These things do happen at times of play,” hesaid.Talking about Sunday’s play, Price observed that his team wouldhave to strive to dismiss India early if they are to entertainany hopes of saving the match. The biggest obstacle in their wayis Sachin Tendulkar. As a gutsy competitor, Price would be hopingto do his bit in helping his team achieve their objective.