Diary: The ambidextrous throwdown specialist and the Samson factor

Throwdown specialist Anoop Sree had spent several years bowling in the Thiruvananthapuram Cricket Stadium, but one evening in September turned out to be different.

A day before the first ODI of the India-West Indies series, Anoop, armed with a sidearm, got a chance to pair up with Daren Sammy. The West Indies head coach asked him to operate in the middle nets, and together the two tested batters from the six-feet mark. By the end of the session, an impressed Sammy asked Anoop:

"Which IPL team are you working for? You're the best throwdown [specialist] I have seen in India."

Anoop told Sammy he was still working hard for such a chance. His cricketing career had stalled due to a knee injury, but the 29-year-old had kept the dream alive in a different way. As a sidearm expert, he's bowled to Harmanpreet Kaur and Smriti Mandhana during India's Trivandrum visit last year, featured as a throwdown specialist and fielding coach in the Kerala Cricket League, and taken personal sessions with Ranji Trophy players from the state.

Most notably, Sanju Samson.

Last year, after a session with Samson at the Ranji Trophy camp, Anoop decided to go up to Chettan and ask for advice on something he had been working on the side.

Anoop had been generating 140-145 kph with his right arm, but for novelty's sake, also been testing out his left arm for a few months. He asked Samson if he should just stick to his strengths or experiment with his left arm as well.

"No no, you have to focus on the left arm also," Samson told him. "It's quite valuable - left-arm throwdowns are very rare so you should do that: you can become an ambidextrous throwdown specialist.

"And not just for marketing, only if you're keen on the process."

Anoop decided to take the plunge. He started to use his left hand for daily activities: writing, eating, brushing. Last month, he checked his speed with the left arm and was touching 125-130 kph. "I am now working on slowers, cutters, and targeting 120kph with all my variations".

Anoop did not bowl with his left arm against the West Indies, because "you need 110% confidence and not a single ball should be a wide. We have to value their time". As he builds up his confidence, he intends to use the two-arm skill on Kerala players during the Ranji season.

"Ambidextrous side-armers are very rare," he said. "Till now, I haven't seen those in the mainstream use both arms because you don't want to take a chance. You must be 200% accurate with every ball. Even left-arm throwdowns are very few, even in the IPL".

Samson's advice has been a big motivator for Anoop, who has worked with the India batter on a one-on-one basis in the past. The West Indies gig was provided by the Kerala Cricket Association, but with Samson, he continues to have solo sessions at the St Xavier's ground in Thumba, the most recent one ahead of the New Zealand tour earlier this year leading up to the T20 World Cup.

Anoop did not get to bowl at the Indian team because they already have their own set of side-armers, but the West Indies stint was an experience to remember.

"Initially, they gave me an old ball, they wanted to see how I was doing. After the first batter left, they switched me to the new ball to bowl different lengths.

For the last three batters, Sammy started an internal challenge between the two, giving each of them targets to their respective batters: 18 balls, 40 runs and so on. The rapport built up quickly: "He knew what I was trying to do, just by actions we could understand each other."

When one of the batters needed one run in one ball, Sammy came up to Anoop and said: "I need a nasty bouncer, he is quite tall".

"I bowled and it correctly hit the glove and helmet. Sammy came to hug me and said: 'You did it, man!'".

"They were all happy and dancing, creating a vibe," Anoop said. "It's intense, but they also include fun activities."

When Sammy got to know Anoop doesn't work for any IPL team, he felt "quite sad", and asked him to message him on Instagram. Possibly given the hectic travel schedule, Anoop is yet to hear back from his throwdown buddy of a day.

Mohammed Irshad was a member of KCL 2026 champions Thrissur Titans, just like Anoop. He was called up as a net bowler for both India and West Indies in Trivandrum at the behest of Prasanth Padmanabhan, a former IPL bowler and now coach & selector. It gave him a chance to bowl to the who's-who of the Indian batting lineup.

Irshad recalled how a meeting with Samson in March 2020, right before the Covid-19 lockdown, had a huge bearing on him. The right-arm quick had travelled to Thumba, hoping to catch Samson bat live and possibly click a photo with him. Irshad ended up doubling as a ball boy, collecting balls to the centre wicket where Samson was batting.

"Later, he called everyone to bowl at him. I bowled 6-7 balls, and he asked me where I was from and how I had come," Irshad recalled. Samson asked him to come the next day too.

When Irshad returned, he was given a new ball and asked to open the bowling. Irshad managed to hit Samson's off-stump, a video of which he proudly shows.

"He liked my slower delivery," Irshad said, also showing the photo he eventually took with Samson. That wasn't all: when he saw the young bowler walking to the main road, he picked him up and dropped him to his location.

Look around, and you'll find countless such Samson stories in Kerala. As the much-loved son of the state, Samson has influenced lives not just through his batting, but also a man of the masses, helping and guiding the next generation along the way.