Sreesanth adds a new colour to the Indian Cricket Team

Indian wins abroad have usually been historic but this one against South Africa will be really special, because a genuine fast bowler has been discovered.

Shantakumaran Sreesanth is not hype but a reality and his figures of (8-99) at the wanderers have celebrated cricketers struggling for encomiums and praise. The man of the match in the first match between India and South Africa went to a man playing only his sixth Test. At Johannesburg the Kerala Express has rampaging, be it with the red cherry, or the flashing willow. Sreesanth is leaving a trail of carnage everywhere and to the keen eye, he is a man with a bright future. It isn't just on the African Safari that the Kerala lad has delivered. A superb spell in Jamaica against West Indies earlier this year had the praises flowing in from the likes of Brian Lara.


But he is not resting on the laurels. After running through the Proteas at the Bullring, Sreesanth perhaps answered the prayers of his parents too.

Sreesanth`s skills and discipline in line and length suggest a man who burns bright in his devotion to his craft. He has a cross as the locket around his neck even though he is a practicing Hindu, he is not averse to stand outside a Masjid and seek divine blessings.

Much of Sreesanth`s rise can be attributed to MRF Pace Academy and the influence of Dennis Lillee. He still carries the cutting of a newspaper where Lillee had predicted three of his wards to play for India - and indeed, Munaf Patel, Sreesanth and Irfan Pathan, have come to fulfil the prophecy.