Anything for team, says "sleep deprived" speedster Ishant Sharma

Speedster Ishant Sharma slept barely four hours in past two days but kept India in fight with three New Zealand wickets in first Test even as he struggled hard to deal with a "jet-lag". Three weeks back, veteran of 96 Tests was all but out of New Zealand series after suffering multiple ligament tears in his right ankle during a Ranji Trophy game but travelled for 24 hours and arrived here 72 hours before start of first Test. "I am t happy because I have t slept for two days and I was struggling a lot today (with my body). way I would have liked to bowl, it did t happen. y asked me to play and I played. Anything, for team," said India's senior-most player.

'Anything for team'

His uneasiness was lack of sound sleep that made him struggle on a track that is getting slower and a kookaburra ball whose seam can go soft after 40 overs.

"t that I wasn't happy with my bowling. I wasn't happy with my body as I could only sleep for 40 minutes last night and day before Test match, I slept for three hours," said Ishant, narrating his struggles with jet lag.

" more you can recover (from jet lag), better effort you can put in on ground. re's better recovery than sound sleep. sounder your sleep is, better your body will respond on ground," lanky fast bowler said.

According to Ishant, he didn't even think about playing Test match, when he had sustained a freak injury. 

"All credit goes to NCA support staff as y worked really hard with me. We never really thought I have to play a Test because my MRI shows I had a complete ligament tear, t one but two tears. People said 'he is out for six weeks'," he recalled. 

Ishant said he started his rehabilitation with an open mind.

"I didn't have any target that I have to play a Test. I thought 'okay, if it's possible to play, I will play but if it's t, re's hardly anything I could have done'. Because way I got injured, I don't think it had happened with anyone. But if you are destined to get injured, you can slip in toilet too," he said, as everyone had a laugh.

Asked when he felt he could give it a push for New Zealand tour, speedster said he bowled 21 overs in two days at NCA in Bengaluru to test his fitness. "I bowled 21 overs in two days at NCA and I got to kw I am fit and that's why I came here and bowled one and half hours to check if I am alright. After travelling for almost 24 hours, it took a big toll on body." On situation of this match, Ishant said at start of second session, it became difficult as pitch had eased out.

"It was t reversing. Actually, thing was happening. I was t holding ball on seam and trying different things. Kookabura after 40 or 50 overs, seam really gets soft, so you need to come hard and hit length very hard. I started bowling cross seam," he said. "Actually, wicket became slow. It had tennis ball bounce at start but when we bowled, re was seam movement. Also for first timers, problem in Wellington is getting used to wind which is a big factor. People actually have little idea how to bowl with or against wind." With New Zealand ahead by 51 runs and India still needing to get five wickets, Ishant is hopeful team can make a comeback. "We have confidence that we can make a comeback. That has been speciality of this team." 

Im credits: @BCCI/ Twitter