espnstar.com’s Rajarshi Gupta brings to you the second part of his exclusive chat with legendary South African speedster Allan Donald.

Few cricketers in world cricket command the same respect and awe that Allan Donald does even six years after his retirement.

In New Delhi to train the Diamond Eagles bowlers for the Airtel Champions League Twenty20, Donald looked relaxed and way too poised for man who ‘loved’ to see timbers flying way away from the pitch.

 A request for an interview was followed by a genuine promise, a quick shower and there we were, at the hotel lobby, where Donald took each question with the same consummate ease with which he rattled best batsmen of his era.

Excerpts.

Rajarshi Gupta: Do you think modern day fast bowlers are not as fit as you guys were in the last decade?

Allan Donald: Well, the amount of cricket today far exceeds what we played today. We did not play as much as modern day cricketers play these days.

The fast bowlers today are dwindling around rather fast and that is cause for concern. They have not been able to keep pace and I think it is certainly a worry that these speedsters cannot keep pace with the game and end up getting injured so often.

RG: You were successful bowling on all kinds of wickets. Is there any bowler who reminds you of the way you used to bowl?

AD: Well not only me, Wasim Akram and Waqar Younus were successful on different pitches too and the kind of consistency they showed on flat decks in the sub-continental surfaces was amazing.

I think Brett Lee bowls a lot like I used to. He is more of ‘bang’ bowler and I used to run in and bang it in hard too. What more, Brett gets it to reverse swing as well and that makes him an extremely dangerous bowler.

Brett stands out from a lot of other bowlers in the sense that he keeps coming back at batsmen even when you think he is not in form and when batsmen seem to be in the comfort zone against him.

As a batsman, you fear bowlers when they are in good form. I felt I had the respect from batsmen when I was in form and like I said, that is where Brett stands out. He just keeps coming at batsmen and they can never relax against him.

Click here to read Allan Donald: Part 1

RG: What is your take on Ishant Sharma? He made a promising start before hitting a rather rough patch.

AD: Ishant is like S Sreesanth in a lot of ways. They both get a good shape on the ball and have a good seam positioning and unfortunately both have been going through tough times.

Like most international cricketers, Ishant was found out too but make no mistake, he is going to come back. The problem with kids today is that they don’t know why they are bowling well. It is naïve for youngsters to not know why they are doing well.

You have to understand your body. Bowling fast is an art and Glenn McGrath and Shaun Pollock showed how much it helps you if you know your strength. They were wonderful with their line and length and were so accurate. It made a huge difference that they knew what their strengths were.

Like I said, Ishant will come back with a bang but he has to work hard, very hard. The lad certainly has talent and that is why he is there in the Indian team.

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RG: Who is the best batsman you have ever bowled to?

AD: I have to pick up two names here. Sachin Tendulkar and Brian Lara. While Sachin, I thought was the best technically and was solid, Lara had more flair. He was unbelievable and I always thought I had a chance against Lara.

Both were exceptional talents but in terms of sheer stroke play and grace, I think Lara was a notch higher than Sachin.

RG: The beginning of 1996 must have been particularly frustrating for you when you were laid off with an injury for over six months.

AD: (Sighs, trying to recollect) Oh yes, I do remember that phase. I was out of cricket for over half a year and then took more than six weeks to recover from a foot operation. It was a hell of a time for me.

I felt nothing but frustration building inside me. I missed a few series and I still remember how tough it was on me.

RG: Then you came back with a bang in the Titan Cup that year and seemed unstoppable for a year.

AD: Indeed. In fact, late 1996 and early 1997 was the best and the fastest I ever bowled. I had a few coaches challenging me, saying- “It is up to you to decide how you want to be remembered.” Those words kept ringing in my ears and pushed me on to perform better with every outing.

There comes a time when you know you are at your best and you have to make use of your form and make sure the phase does not go waste.

RG: The South Africans were once again a let down after starting the ICC Champions Trophy as favourites. What do you make of the current team?

AD: Well, you see batting is South Africa’s Test strength. With Graeme Smith, Jacques Kallis, JP Duminy, in the middle order, Mark Boucher in at number six, the Proteas have a lot of depth in the batting department.

However, South Africa lack a real shock bowler and that is where they are hurting. Makhaya Ntini has been around for a while and done well for us but I think he is on his way out now. He just has a couple of years left in him. Wayne Parnell looks okay to me though he is only a youngster and has a long way to go.

I have some expectations of Morne Morkel. He is tall and is always ready to bend his back and try and extract movement.

The South Africans looked extremely rusty at the Champions Trophy. You cannot go into such a major tournament looking so rusty and out of shape.

RG: Do you then think South Africa will find it tough in the Test series against England?

AD: I think it will be a very good series. Not a lot of people will give England a lot of chance but let me assure you that they have a very good pace attack with some quality fast bowlers in the side.

South Africa meanwhile, have a lot of work to do and need to brush up their skills.

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