Shami and ZAK. Will this be the best bowling combo for India in tests in the short-term?

So, Sachin Tendulkar has retired. A void has been created in our hearts and minds. Almost all of us are thinking, what’s next for Indian cricket? Who will carry the burden of a countries hopes and dreams? There have numerous opinions – Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma and even 15 year old Prithvi Shaw. But what people aren’t noticing is the scope for bowling in the India. The country has produced some wonderful bowlers like Anil Kumble, Javagal Srinath, Bishan Singh Bedi, Harbhajan Singh, Kapil Dev and so on. Can’t we replicate the bowling attack of the past?
      One of the major findings in the series against West Indies was Mohammed Shami. Coming from the town of Sahaspur in Uttar Pradesh, Shami has shown that he can bowl fast and with a good length. But the most intriguing feature of his bowling attack, was the seam movement he produced. On debut, he ran through the West Indies batting line with four wickets in the 1st innings and five in the 2nd. It wasn’t clear if he was producing the full reverse swing because the WI batsman weren’t playing it properly. None of them tried to counter the ball by standing outside the crease. In fact, most of his wickets came from drives played the West Indies batsman. In a country, where the pitches are made for spin bowling, Shami did something unthinkable – seam movement combined with good length. WI captain Darren Sammy said “We got the ball to move, to reverse a little bit. The difference between our bowlers and Shami was the length. He was bowling the ball into the pitch, bowling wicket-to-wicket. When he was reversing into the right-hander, he started on a good length, outside the off stump, hitting the stumps. Our bowlers were bowling it full, under the bat, or short. We were not consistent in our line and length. He showed us how to do it. And that is the way it should be done."
      Now we come to the question, who is the bowler that can support Shami in tests in the short run? Let us look at the possible options available in the fast bowling department

1. Bhuvneshwar Kumar : He has neither the pace of Umesh Yadav nor the height and bounce of Ishant Sharma. But what makes him deadly is his length. Similar to Shaun Pollock, he balls from close to the wicket. Most of the balls have to be played by the batsman and he produces enough movement to make the batsman uncomfortable. Though he was unimpressive the last series against West Indies, he is still a bright young talent.
2. Ishant Sharma – Tall and intimidating, Ishant Sharma can bounce the ball and at a good pace. Though he his form has dipped in the past six months, Captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni has continued to show faith in him. He remains one of the few fast bowlers who is willing to bowl long spells. Being just 25, he still has time to come out of this dip in form and live up to his full potential.
3. Zaheer Khan –Dropped from the Indian squad following a slump, he has been slowly reworking his way through the Ranji trophy matches. His ability to swing the new ball and reverse the old one makes him one of the most dangerous bowlers the country possesses. He also brings to the table, a huge amount of experience that can help the squad in testing situations. However, the BCCI hasn’t renewed his contract for the 2013-14 season and so it’s safe to say, he won’t be playing in any of the tours nearby.
4. Umesh Yadav – Expensive but can take wickets. His advantages are that he is fit and is also a good fielder. Having taken 32 wickets from 9 matches, it is clear he has the talent to become a permanent member of the Indian team.
I have ignored a few bowlers who are still upcoming because Shami’s form eclipses their chances of making it into the team for the series to South Africa.
Having looked at the options available, the two possible choices are Ishant Sharma and Bhuvneshwar Kumar. Between the two of them, Ishant Sharma has been bowling dismally in the recent past. Though Bhuvaneshwar Kumar claimed just 3 wickets in the 2 tests against the West Indies, he still remains the best choice to complement Shami.