Trent Boult- The First Over Wicket Taking Master

Trent Boult, with his left-arm spin, and years of experience knows how to exploit movement with the new-ball better than most going around. Despite the common notion that the white ball does not provide much movement, Trent Boult has shown that he can extract enough to keep batters under pressure. His left-arm angle further makes him all the more tougher to face, making him an asset to any side he place for.

With the Mumbai Indians, his ability up front made it easier for Mumbai to spread Bumrah’s overs around the innings. Now, with the Rajasthan Royals, Trent Boult, tasked with the first over as always, has completed a rare feat of picking up two wickets in the first over on four occasions in his IPL career. No other bowler has managed to achieve the same feat more than twice in their career. His feat though indicates his ability to break batting line-ups as early as ever. He did so last night against the Capitals, picking up Shaw and Pandey in the first over to kill the Capitals chase before it even started.

His ability has also allowed his side to think about defending low scores. Last year, in the Big Bash League, Trent Boult replicated his efforts as he helped his side make a score of 122 look a lot bigger than it actually is. His ability has been proof that quality, swinging left-arm pace is among the toughest to face with the new-ball. Beyond swing in his first over, Boult has done a fair bit in the other parts of the powerplay. Since IPL 2020, no bowler has taken more wickets in the powerplay as him, and very few left-arm pacers have looked as menacing as him with the new-ball.

His double wicket overs this season though had a lot more to be happy about given the situations they came in. Against both the Capitals and Sunrisers, Rajasthan got off to a really good start in the powerplay, which shows that the new-ball is negotiable, and can even be taken on. Against the Capitals, Rajasthan got five boundaries in the first over to set things rolling, and on both occasions, they finished with really good scores.

Trent Boult though, proved that the new-ball still looks menacing with the right skill behind it. He came in with his unique angle and ensured the stumps were in play through his spell. His new-ball figures in both games are clear indicators of his skill, which can only be replicated by a fair few in today’s cricketing World.