For Mumbai Indians, chinaman bowler Vignesh Puthur has been a breath of fresh air. The 23-year-old took a three wicket haul against Chennai Super Kings. He scalped Ruturaj Gaikwad, Shivam Dube and Deepak Hooda to grab every IPL fan’s attention. However, against Gujarat Titans, he was not even picked as a substitute. Mumbai Indians opted to bowl and did not use Puthur. The internet was intrigued about the choice.
Vignesh puthur who Picked 3 Wickets in Last match, Not Playing today’s match v GT #GTvMI pic.twitter.com/9xaRj27TOr
— (@Shebas_10dulkar) March 29, 2025
I’m not claiming that Vignesh Puthur is a great bowler but he bowled well in his first match so he should have played today. https://t.co/csE7Bnr0zh
— Vipul (@Vipul_Espeaks) March 29, 2025
After taking 3 wickets vs CSK VIGNESH PUTHUR got whole limelight, got full praise even from the Owner and today the Captain Hardik back to side and VIGNESH PUTHUR got dropped .
This is nothing a less than Baffling decision from MI management. Missing Rohit’S MI
— Santosh says (@SmpPhukan) March 29, 2025
MI making inroads blunders by dropping vignesh puthur vs GT making them difficult to take wickets here tonight.#IPL2025 #GTvMI
— @nostradamusofcricket (@LegacyMauryan) March 29, 2025
Twenty three year-old Vignesh Puthur, who made his IPL debut by picking up three wickets for the Mumbai Indians in their recent match with Chennai Super Kings, bowled medium pace as kid, but was guided to becoming a chinaman bowler by his friend Mohammed Shareef. Shareef, who used to attend cricket coaching, recognised the talent in Puthur when he saw the young kid play at the age of 11 near their home in Malappuram district of Kerala.
“He used to bowl medium pace initially. I told him to instead try leg spin as it could be beneficial for him if he was good at it. I was myself an off spinner, so I told him some of the technical aspects of spin bowling.
“But he became good at it very quickly due to his diligence and so I suggested that he go to a cricket camp. I spoke to his parents and for the next 2-3 years, we used to go to the camps together,” Shareef told a TV channel.
Shareef, who is an ‘ustad’ (religious teacher), spoke to the media only after Puthur revealed his friend’s role in guiding him in the direction of becoming a ‘chinaman’ bowler.
However, when Shareef was guiding Puthur in the direction of left-arm leg spin, he did not know at that time that it was actually called ‘chinaman’ bowling, a rarity in cricket.
“I did not know back then that it was called chinaman. When he started playing, he was probably the only chinaman bowler in India. The only other player I knew of who bowled like that was the Australian spinner Brad Hogg,” he said.
After 2-3 years of coaching, Puthur got selected for the U-14 team of Kerala and Shareef for the U-19 squad.
“He worked diligently in the camps. After he got selected in the U-14 team, he rose quickly due to his performance, became vice captain, reached the state level, but was not considered for the senior team. Now he is playing for the Mumbai Indians,” he said, happy and proud of his friend’s achievements.
Shareef was not as successful in his cricketing career and is now an ‘ustad’ at a mosque here.
When he was told that he is now being recognised as the person who first guided Puthur on his path of success, Shareef said that he does not deserve any such recognition.
“I just did what anyone who saw a talented player like him would have done — give him some advise. That is all that I did. I only shared some information with him. He developed it and his skills and reached where he is now on his own. He was always a good learner,” he said.
Shareef said that now Puthur has got a good start with his debut for the Mumbai Indians, he should capitalise on it and work harder to reach new heights.
With PTI inputs
