Tough lessons for George Linde on debut

RANCHI: For the age-old reputation the Indian pitches have of being spinner-friendly, they can be punishing if you do not have enough experience of bowling on them. The challenge could be greater if you are born outside the sub-continent, and if you have to bowl to an in-form Indian batting unit.
South Africa's 27-year-old debutant spinner George Linde will bear witness to that after bowling 31 overs over two days here at JSCA International Cricket Stadium, picking up four wickets for 133 runs.
It has to be said that his performance was creditable because his senior spinning partner Dane Piedt went at @5.61 per over for just one wicket. Neither did the South African pacers make much of an impression once the ball got old.
"I learnt a lot of lessons to be honest," the humble man said on Sunday. "I didn't expect to play Test cricket this year, so when I got the call-up, I was quite nervous but luckily I had a few days to settle down. Today, I learnt quite a few lessons, especially at the end. But I'll take four wickets on debut."
Linde is truly a quick learner. He was guilty of bowling a leg-stump line quite often on Saturday, which made scoring easy as the ball was not turning much. On Sunday, he bowled more on middle and off, getting the ball to turn and bounce. The wicket of Ajinkya Rahane was a result of bowling that line, and he admitted that that was the adjustment he needed to make.
"Consistency is very important bowling here. I got it wrong pitching towards the leg stump yesterday. They (Indian batsmen) are very strong off their legs. Today I was lot better, bit more on off-stump and off and middle. I think it worked," Linde stressed.