CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Inside the Spectrum Center, JuJu Watkins is screaming and clapping, shouting and dishing out high fives, cheering and flexing. She’s doing whatever she can to pump up her USC teammates and implore the crowd to root hard for her Trojans.
Because during games this season, that’s the limit of the ways that the reigning National Player of the Year can impact her team. After having surgery to repair a torn ACL she suffered in the second round of the NCAA Tournament in March, Watkins is sidelined for the season, unable to dazzle fans or lead the Trojans to victories with her supernatural scoring, strong rebounding or superb playmaking abilities.
Last season, as a sophomore, Watkins led the Trojans in scoring, assists, steals and minutes played. The 6-foot-2 guard was third in rebounding. When contests got tight, USC leaned on her. When they needed a bucket, the Trojans expected her to make a play.
This season, Watkins is not present on the hardwood to be relied upon. The expectation that she will save the Trojans can no longer exist. Lindsay Gottlieb will need someone else to step up and do it.
And so, this is where USC found itself on Sunday afternoon in the home of the Charlotte Hornets with its back against the wall, trailing No. 9 N.C. State by 11 points with nine minutes to play after Wolfpack guard Zoe Brooks converted an And-1. Watkins wasn’t on the floor and couldn’t be inserted into the game. Someone else was going to have to lead the Trojans.
“I just kept saying, ‘We can do this,’ and I felt like they believed that,” Gottlieb said. “… We have a lot of different shotmakers and playmakers. We have some defensive stoppers. We can put people in different spots, and we tried to do that all game.”
This time, it wound up being Jazzy Davidson, who is the latest in what seems like an endless line of top-ranked recruits Gottlieb has lured to Southern Cal. In a nationally televised game in front of thousands of fans in an NBA arena, the 6-foot-1 true freshman guard put USC on her back and said, “Follow me.”
Davidson scored 18 of her 21 points in the second half and came through in a crucial way when the game was at its tightest. With 8.2 seconds left and the Trojans trailing by a single point, Davidson cut hard to the basket and got ahead of her defender — not all that dissimilar to a speedy wide receiver beating a cornerback off the line of scrimmage at the snap of the football — and caught Kennedy Smith’s inbounds pass in-stride, then sank the go-ahead layup with relative ease.
Davidson’s first collegiate game-winner — of likely many more to come in her career — will be on her highlight reel for a long time. And when fans of women’s college basketball think about how USC is reinventing itself this season without Watkins on the floor, it will be a play that’s pointed to.
“I’m just really proud of the team’s togetherness and toughness that we showed today. You don’t know exactly what you have until you’re put in these situations, which is why we schedule them,” Gottlieb said. “And I think, you know, it’s a chance for us to redefine our identity a little bit. That was on full display today.”
While Davidson’s second-half performance was heroic, what also can’t be overlooked is how Londynn Jones guided the Trojans offensively in the first half, and how Smith’s defense and can’t-quit attitude resulted in the game-sealing steal as she picked off Brooks’ desperate inbounds pass with under two seconds to play.
To say that USC’s 69-68 win over N.C. State was a statement victory wouldn’t be hyperbolic. It showed everyone that, yes, even without Watkins, the Trojans are still capable of contending for a deep NCAA Tournament run. It proved that, yes, USC still has the talent to be a team consistently ranked in the AP Top 25 Poll. And yes, there are other players on this roster capable of making game-winning plays that make crowds roar.
Moreover, it was proof of concept that USC can still win meaningful games on big stages without much of the same cast of players that guided them to back-to-back Elite Eight trips over the past two seasons.
“Everybody’s sort of in a new role. And we just think it’s a great opportunity. This is the way we want to play,” Gottlieb said. “We want to play fast and fluid. We’re trying to play a more open, pro-style offense, where there’s a lot of reads and options and putting people in different spots. We’re always going to play hard and tenaciously on the defensive end… I think that’s what the players bought into.”
In addition to having an extraordinary talent like Watkins out for the year, USC also sent its frontcourt pairing of a season ago, Kiki Iriafen and Rayah Marshall, to the WNBA. Then Avery Howell and Kayleigh Heckel transferred to Washington and UConn, respectively. And Talia von Oelhoffen exhausted her eligibility.
The only player returning to the court for the Trojans this year who started multiple games last season is Smith.
But Gottlieb adjusted and reloaded. Jones — who scored 14 points in the first half against N.C. State on a perfect 4-of-4 shooting — came over from rival UCLA via the transfer portal. All-ACC standout Kara Dunn arrived the same way from Georgia Tech. Gerda Raulusaityte, a 6-foot-3 forward who was the MVP of the Lithuanian Women’s Basketball League, enrolled at USC as a junior. Malia Samuels, who stripped the ball from Brooks on a potential game-winning drive to the basket late, has seen her role grow.
And then, of course, there’s Davidson.
Tabbed as the No. 1 recruit in the country by ESPN, the native of Clackamas, Oregon began making her case on Sunday as the top freshman in women’s college basketball. After shooting 1-of-10 from the floor in the first half, Davidson seemed to enter the third quarter with a new mindset and a renewed swagger. She started the second half off by connecting on her first five shot attempts, scoring inside the paint and from behind the arc, showing off her lanky frame, soft touch and confidence.
“When you have a great player like that, knowing that shots are going to fall, you just have to keep her, you know, Jazzy,” the veteran Jones said of Davidson. “What she’s done already so far has been amazing, and she has so much to look forward to.”
Added N.C. State coach Wes Moore: “She had a great game. She took us off the bounce, and then if we did try to maybe contain a little bit more, she knocked down some 3s.”
While Jones and Davidson impressed with their shotmaking, being stout on defense is what USC counted on against N.C. State. The Wolfpack made just five 3-pointers, scored only eight second-chance points on 17 offensive rebounds, and turned the ball over 18 times — which USC then flipped into 15 points.
The anchor of the Trojans’ defense seemed to be Smith, whose impact on that end of the floor wasn’t lost on Gottlieb, despite it not necessarily showing up in the box score. The sophomore finished with 10 points, eight boards and one steal in 30 minutes, but was a constant disruptor against N.C. State’s offensive attack.
“I think what makes Kennedy such an elite player is that she can impact the game without scoring,” Gottlieb said. “She’s unique in that she can make other elite players better… She’s elite defensively. She’s all over the boards, and there’s just a competitiveness about her that I think other people are like, ‘Okay, we can get a stop, we can make a play,’ no matter what’s happening on the offensive end.”
USC’s next game is against an even tougher ranked opponent as No. 2 South Carolina visits Los Angeles’ Crypto.com Arena on Saturday for the first of two neutral-site games over the next two years between the Trojans and Gamecocks. And it’s quite possible that the Trojans will lose that game to Dawn Staley, Ta’Niya Latson and co.
But there’s also a real chance that they win it.
Either way, in the long view of this season, with Davidson, Jones and Smith leading the way on the court, with Gottlieb instilling a defensive-first mindset and putting her best players in positions to be successful, the Women of Troy are going to be just fine as Watkins cheers from the bench.
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![From MRF Pace Foundation to IPL spotlight—Charting Praful Hinge and Sakib Hussain’s meteoric rise Sunrisers Hyderabad’s bowlers have been among the most expensive in this Indian Premier League (IPL). Across their first four games, they have returned an economy of 10.42 and an average of 36.65, the third-highest in the competition, while their dot-ball percentage of 28.9 is the lowest in the tournament.The PowerPlay has been even worse. SRH’s four wickets in this phase have come at an economy of 12.04 and an average of 72.25, with seven different bowlers used in the first six overs and only one taking more than a single wicket.So, when Praful Hinge and Sakib Hussain were handed their IPL debuts against a free-swinging Rajasthan Royals line-up, expectations were low.Not, however, for M. Senthilnathan, head coach at the MRF Pace Foundation in Chennai.“Praful’s strength was always the line and length; the length he had was always very solid,” Senthilnathan told Sportstar. “When he keeps on hitting that length, there could always be some deviation in and out.”Monday night delivered. Hinge, as well as Sakib, combined for eight for 58 in eight overs, removing RR’s top five inside the first three overs. Hinge set it up with four wickets in his first two overs, including three in the opening over — the first bowler to do so in an IPL match — before Sakib ensured there was no way back.Built on repeatable lengthsHinge ripped through the RR top order with the new ball, first dismissing Vaibhav Suryavanshi with a delivery that climbed sharply on him, before splattering Dhruv Jurel’s stumps and having fellow debutant Lhuan-dre Pretorius caught in the deep.Senthilnathan, who worked with Hinge from 2023 to 2024, first met the 24-year-old during the foundation’s selection trials three years ago, where his potential was immediately apparent.“Praful had some injury, so he didn’t bowl much, but from whatever he bowled, we could see that he’s got something. Then he went to rehab, and we got him ready in the off-season from March to August,” he said.The recovery from a back injury dominated his 2023 stint, bringing its own physical and mental uncertainties.“He had a lot of doubts, everybody goes through it, whether he would be able to play and bowl, those kinds of things will come to anyone,” the coach said. “So, he was doing his rehab, and mentally we were talking to him, just telling him that he would be OK.“When he came to the bowling phase, we felt that if the L4 is fractured, then there must be something in his bowling that we need to get right,” Senthilnathan explained. “Nobody has such injuries without any technical fault; there will be something. He was falling off and trying to muscle the ball instead of going forward, so automatically the lateral refraction was happening.“So, we started doing a lot of short runs and putting in his mind what we needed to do—go forward rather than twisting or curving his back. We worked on it, and then he went in August, September and played. They (Vidarbha) were also surprised that he was ready, and he had a very reasonable season.”Hinge returned to MRF in 2024, this time focused on skill development.“We couldn’t put him into hard training when we met in 2023 because of his injury, so in 2024, we really took on the challenge, and he took the challenge as well. He worked on his bowling areas and then worked on skills, looking for the right areas, moving them all from that length.”Alongside the technical work came lessons in handling pressure from Aussie fast bowling great Glenn McGrath, who serves as Director at the MRF Pace Foundation.“A lot of mental work was also put in by Glenn, about taking the pressure and how to handle pressure in a crunch situation, and at the same time, when there is success, how to handle it,” he noted.“These are all very important points, only experience like Glenn McGrath’s would have been able to share.”Hinge also went on an exchange programme in Australia, where he trained on the centre wicket at the Gabba alongside current Australian pacers Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood and Jhye Richardson. Praful Hinge at the CA Centre of Excellence.
| Photo Credit:
SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
Praful Hinge at the CA Centre of Excellence.
| Photo Credit:
SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
“That’s a great experience for these boys,” Senthilnathan said. “When they go there, the wickets are different, they’ll be bowling to different kinds of batters, and the wicket is helpful. When the wicket is helpful, you have to be patient and hitting the right areas is what you need to look at. The length also differs in Australia, so all these things they learn, along with professionalism, how to keep yourself fit, what to eat, how to hydrate, how to train, and taking initiative.”That work was evident on Monday night. Hinge later said he had been “manifesting” his performance, but Senthilnathan had a more grounded explanation.“You can’t do what Jasprit Bumrah is doing, or Prasidh [Krishna] is doing, but Praful is known for something, which has taken him there. You have got to keep on repeating the same thing, so that’s why he’s confident, because he knows that he can bowl those lengths.”A peculiar action, and a slower ballWhile Hinge took the spotlight, Senthilnathan was equally impressed by Sakib.“Sakib will bowl 140kmph, and he’s very slippery, somewhere close to Bumrah, everything (his action) is quite fast. He’s got good speed; people have not seen his slower one, which he can also execute easily because of his action, so picking it also will be difficult for the batsmen,” he said.“I feel a lot of importance has gone to Praful, but this boy has not bowled any less; he’s given a lesser number of runs, and he’s also got four wickets.”Sakib, originally from Bihar, was introduced to the Pace Foundation through fellow cricketers and quickly made an impression.“Sakib comes from a very humble background, and everything was new for him when he first came here. Everything is taken care of, and they only have to worry about the training they have to do. That phase was good,” Senthilnathan said. Sakib with McGrath and Senthilnathan at the MRF Pace Foundation.
| Photo Credit:
SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
Sakib with McGrath and Senthilnathan at the MRF Pace Foundation.
| Photo Credit:
SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
He was later called up as a net bowler with Chennai Super Kings in IPL 2023, but an injury cut his stint short.“He did go to CSK as a net bowler, and they were all impressed, but to his bad luck, he had a stiff back,” Senthilnathan explained. “Had he been able to bowl, CSK probably would not have left him, so he went off. Next year, he went to Kolkata Knight Riders, and they actually won that year.”The match against RR showcased both sides of his skill set. He hurried an in-form Yashasvi Jaiswal into a catch at third man and later worked through the middle and lower order, including Donovan Ferreira, with a cleverly disguised slower ball after the batter had crossed fifty.Senthilnathan believes there is more to come.“I still think we have a lot to see of him at the death. Slower ones will come, and yorkers will come, so 140 kmph+ yorkers, if he handles them too, I think then it will be very good. Picking his action is a bit difficult; it’s not easy, not conventional. He sort of falls in front, so that means there’s no lateral reflection.”A look to the futureThe immediate challenge for SRH’s new fast-bowling pair is to sustain this impact through the rest of the IPL.For Senthilnathan, the message remains simple.“IPL is like a lottery, I won’t say anything more than that, because you’re restricted to bowl only four overs. With four overs, you cannot have too many strategies, so basically, you have to bowl what you know to do. You should do what you know best, simple as that.”Published on Apr 16, 2026 #MRF #Pace #Foundation #IPL #spotlightCharting #Praful #Hinge #Sakib #Hussains #meteoric #rise](https://ss-i.thgim.com/public/incoming/tmkxsn/article70867987.ece/alternates/FREE_1200/Praful_MRF.jpeg "From MRF Pace Foundation to IPL spotlight—Charting Praful Hinge and Sakib Hussain’s meteoric rise Sunrisers Hyderabad’s bowlers have been among the most expensive in this Indian Premier League (IPL). Across their first four games, they have returned an economy of 10.42 and an average of 36.65, the third-highest in the competition, while their dot-ball percentage of 28.9 is the lowest in the tournament.The PowerPlay has been even worse. SRH’s four wickets in this phase have come at an economy of 12.04 and an average of 72.25, with seven different bowlers used in the first six overs and only one taking more than a single wicket.So, when Praful Hinge and Sakib Hussain were handed their IPL debuts against a free-swinging Rajasthan Royals line-up, expectations were low.Not, however, for M. Senthilnathan, head coach at the MRF Pace Foundation in Chennai.“Praful’s strength was always the line and length; the length he had was always very solid,” Senthilnathan told Sportstar. “When he keeps on hitting that length, there could always be some deviation in and out.”Monday night delivered. Hinge, as well as Sakib, combined for eight for 58 in eight overs, removing RR’s top five inside the first three overs. Hinge set it up with four wickets in his first two overs, including three in the opening over — the first bowler to do so in an IPL match — before Sakib ensured there was no way back.Built on repeatable lengthsHinge ripped through the RR top order with the new ball, first dismissing Vaibhav Suryavanshi with a delivery that climbed sharply on him, before splattering Dhruv Jurel’s stumps and having fellow debutant Lhuan-dre Pretorius caught in the deep.Senthilnathan, who worked with Hinge from 2023 to 2024, first met the 24-year-old during the foundation’s selection trials three years ago, where his potential was immediately apparent.“Praful had some injury, so he didn’t bowl much, but from whatever he bowled, we could see that he’s got something. Then he went to rehab, and we got him ready in the off-season from March to August,” he said.The recovery from a back injury dominated his 2023 stint, bringing its own physical and mental uncertainties.“He had a lot of doubts, everybody goes through it, whether he would be able to play and bowl, those kinds of things will come to anyone,” the coach said. “So, he was doing his rehab, and mentally we were talking to him, just telling him that he would be OK.“When he came to the bowling phase, we felt that if the L4 is fractured, then there must be something in his bowling that we need to get right,” Senthilnathan explained. “Nobody has such injuries without any technical fault; there will be something. He was falling off and trying to muscle the ball instead of going forward, so automatically the lateral refraction was happening.“So, we started doing a lot of short runs and putting in his mind what we needed to do—go forward rather than twisting or curving his back. We worked on it, and then he went in August, September and played. They (Vidarbha) were also surprised that he was ready, and he had a very reasonable season.”Hinge returned to MRF in 2024, this time focused on skill development.“We couldn’t put him into hard training when we met in 2023 because of his injury, so in 2024, we really took on the challenge, and he took the challenge as well. He worked on his bowling areas and then worked on skills, looking for the right areas, moving them all from that length.”Alongside the technical work came lessons in handling pressure from Aussie fast bowling great Glenn McGrath, who serves as Director at the MRF Pace Foundation.“A lot of mental work was also put in by Glenn, about taking the pressure and how to handle pressure in a crunch situation, and at the same time, when there is success, how to handle it,” he noted.“These are all very important points, only experience like Glenn McGrath’s would have been able to share.”Hinge also went on an exchange programme in Australia, where he trained on the centre wicket at the Gabba alongside current Australian pacers Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood and Jhye Richardson. Praful Hinge at the CA Centre of Excellence.
| Photo Credit:
SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
Praful Hinge at the CA Centre of Excellence.
| Photo Credit:
SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
“That’s a great experience for these boys,” Senthilnathan said. “When they go there, the wickets are different, they’ll be bowling to different kinds of batters, and the wicket is helpful. When the wicket is helpful, you have to be patient and hitting the right areas is what you need to look at. The length also differs in Australia, so all these things they learn, along with professionalism, how to keep yourself fit, what to eat, how to hydrate, how to train, and taking initiative.”That work was evident on Monday night. Hinge later said he had been “manifesting” his performance, but Senthilnathan had a more grounded explanation.“You can’t do what Jasprit Bumrah is doing, or Prasidh [Krishna] is doing, but Praful is known for something, which has taken him there. You have got to keep on repeating the same thing, so that’s why he’s confident, because he knows that he can bowl those lengths.”A peculiar action, and a slower ballWhile Hinge took the spotlight, Senthilnathan was equally impressed by Sakib.“Sakib will bowl 140kmph, and he’s very slippery, somewhere close to Bumrah, everything (his action) is quite fast. He’s got good speed; people have not seen his slower one, which he can also execute easily because of his action, so picking it also will be difficult for the batsmen,” he said.“I feel a lot of importance has gone to Praful, but this boy has not bowled any less; he’s given a lesser number of runs, and he’s also got four wickets.”Sakib, originally from Bihar, was introduced to the Pace Foundation through fellow cricketers and quickly made an impression.“Sakib comes from a very humble background, and everything was new for him when he first came here. Everything is taken care of, and they only have to worry about the training they have to do. That phase was good,” Senthilnathan said. Sakib with McGrath and Senthilnathan at the MRF Pace Foundation.
| Photo Credit:
SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
Sakib with McGrath and Senthilnathan at the MRF Pace Foundation.
| Photo Credit:
SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
He was later called up as a net bowler with Chennai Super Kings in IPL 2023, but an injury cut his stint short.“He did go to CSK as a net bowler, and they were all impressed, but to his bad luck, he had a stiff back,” Senthilnathan explained. “Had he been able to bowl, CSK probably would not have left him, so he went off. Next year, he went to Kolkata Knight Riders, and they actually won that year.”The match against RR showcased both sides of his skill set. He hurried an in-form Yashasvi Jaiswal into a catch at third man and later worked through the middle and lower order, including Donovan Ferreira, with a cleverly disguised slower ball after the batter had crossed fifty.Senthilnathan believes there is more to come.“I still think we have a lot to see of him at the death. Slower ones will come, and yorkers will come, so 140 kmph+ yorkers, if he handles them too, I think then it will be very good. Picking his action is a bit difficult; it’s not easy, not conventional. He sort of falls in front, so that means there’s no lateral reflection.”A look to the futureThe immediate challenge for SRH’s new fast-bowling pair is to sustain this impact through the rest of the IPL.For Senthilnathan, the message remains simple.“IPL is like a lottery, I won’t say anything more than that, because you’re restricted to bowl only four overs. With four overs, you cannot have too many strategies, so basically, you have to bowl what you know to do. You should do what you know best, simple as that.”Published on Apr 16, 2026 #MRF #Pace #Foundation #IPL #spotlightCharting #Praful #Hinge #Sakib #Hussains #meteoric #rise")
![From MRF Pace Foundation to IPL spotlight—Charting Praful Hinge and Sakib Hussain’s meteoric rise Sunrisers Hyderabad’s bowlers have been among the most expensive in this Indian Premier League (IPL). Across their first four games, they have returned an economy of 10.42 and an average of 36.65, the third-highest in the competition, while their dot-ball percentage of 28.9 is the lowest in the tournament.The PowerPlay has been even worse. SRH’s four wickets in this phase have come at an economy of 12.04 and an average of 72.25, with seven different bowlers used in the first six overs and only one taking more than a single wicket.So, when Praful Hinge and Sakib Hussain were handed their IPL debuts against a free-swinging Rajasthan Royals line-up, expectations were low.Not, however, for M. Senthilnathan, head coach at the MRF Pace Foundation in Chennai.“Praful’s strength was always the line and length; the length he had was always very solid,” Senthilnathan told Sportstar. “When he keeps on hitting that length, there could always be some deviation in and out.”Monday night delivered. Hinge, as well as Sakib, combined for eight for 58 in eight overs, removing RR’s top five inside the first three overs. Hinge set it up with four wickets in his first two overs, including three in the opening over — the first bowler to do so in an IPL match — before Sakib ensured there was no way back.Built on repeatable lengthsHinge ripped through the RR top order with the new ball, first dismissing Vaibhav Suryavanshi with a delivery that climbed sharply on him, before splattering Dhruv Jurel’s stumps and having fellow debutant Lhuan-dre Pretorius caught in the deep.Senthilnathan, who worked with Hinge from 2023 to 2024, first met the 24-year-old during the foundation’s selection trials three years ago, where his potential was immediately apparent.“Praful had some injury, so he didn’t bowl much, but from whatever he bowled, we could see that he’s got something. Then he went to rehab, and we got him ready in the off-season from March to August,” he said.The recovery from a back injury dominated his 2023 stint, bringing its own physical and mental uncertainties.“He had a lot of doubts, everybody goes through it, whether he would be able to play and bowl, those kinds of things will come to anyone,” the coach said. “So, he was doing his rehab, and mentally we were talking to him, just telling him that he would be OK.“When he came to the bowling phase, we felt that if the L4 is fractured, then there must be something in his bowling that we need to get right,” Senthilnathan explained. “Nobody has such injuries without any technical fault; there will be something. He was falling off and trying to muscle the ball instead of going forward, so automatically the lateral refraction was happening.“So, we started doing a lot of short runs and putting in his mind what we needed to do—go forward rather than twisting or curving his back. We worked on it, and then he went in August, September and played. They (Vidarbha) were also surprised that he was ready, and he had a very reasonable season.”Hinge returned to MRF in 2024, this time focused on skill development.“We couldn’t put him into hard training when we met in 2023 because of his injury, so in 2024, we really took on the challenge, and he took the challenge as well. He worked on his bowling areas and then worked on skills, looking for the right areas, moving them all from that length.”Alongside the technical work came lessons in handling pressure from Aussie fast bowling great Glenn McGrath, who serves as Director at the MRF Pace Foundation.“A lot of mental work was also put in by Glenn, about taking the pressure and how to handle pressure in a crunch situation, and at the same time, when there is success, how to handle it,” he noted.“These are all very important points, only experience like Glenn McGrath’s would have been able to share.”Hinge also went on an exchange programme in Australia, where he trained on the centre wicket at the Gabba alongside current Australian pacers Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood and Jhye Richardson. Praful Hinge at the CA Centre of Excellence.
| Photo Credit:
SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
Praful Hinge at the CA Centre of Excellence.
| Photo Credit:
SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
“That’s a great experience for these boys,” Senthilnathan said. “When they go there, the wickets are different, they’ll be bowling to different kinds of batters, and the wicket is helpful. When the wicket is helpful, you have to be patient and hitting the right areas is what you need to look at. The length also differs in Australia, so all these things they learn, along with professionalism, how to keep yourself fit, what to eat, how to hydrate, how to train, and taking initiative.”That work was evident on Monday night. Hinge later said he had been “manifesting” his performance, but Senthilnathan had a more grounded explanation.“You can’t do what Jasprit Bumrah is doing, or Prasidh [Krishna] is doing, but Praful is known for something, which has taken him there. You have got to keep on repeating the same thing, so that’s why he’s confident, because he knows that he can bowl those lengths.”A peculiar action, and a slower ballWhile Hinge took the spotlight, Senthilnathan was equally impressed by Sakib.“Sakib will bowl 140kmph, and he’s very slippery, somewhere close to Bumrah, everything (his action) is quite fast. He’s got good speed; people have not seen his slower one, which he can also execute easily because of his action, so picking it also will be difficult for the batsmen,” he said.“I feel a lot of importance has gone to Praful, but this boy has not bowled any less; he’s given a lesser number of runs, and he’s also got four wickets.”Sakib, originally from Bihar, was introduced to the Pace Foundation through fellow cricketers and quickly made an impression.“Sakib comes from a very humble background, and everything was new for him when he first came here. Everything is taken care of, and they only have to worry about the training they have to do. That phase was good,” Senthilnathan said. Sakib with McGrath and Senthilnathan at the MRF Pace Foundation.
| Photo Credit:
SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
Sakib with McGrath and Senthilnathan at the MRF Pace Foundation.
| Photo Credit:
SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
He was later called up as a net bowler with Chennai Super Kings in IPL 2023, but an injury cut his stint short.“He did go to CSK as a net bowler, and they were all impressed, but to his bad luck, he had a stiff back,” Senthilnathan explained. “Had he been able to bowl, CSK probably would not have left him, so he went off. Next year, he went to Kolkata Knight Riders, and they actually won that year.”The match against RR showcased both sides of his skill set. He hurried an in-form Yashasvi Jaiswal into a catch at third man and later worked through the middle and lower order, including Donovan Ferreira, with a cleverly disguised slower ball after the batter had crossed fifty.Senthilnathan believes there is more to come.“I still think we have a lot to see of him at the death. Slower ones will come, and yorkers will come, so 140 kmph+ yorkers, if he handles them too, I think then it will be very good. Picking his action is a bit difficult; it’s not easy, not conventional. He sort of falls in front, so that means there’s no lateral reflection.”A look to the futureThe immediate challenge for SRH’s new fast-bowling pair is to sustain this impact through the rest of the IPL.For Senthilnathan, the message remains simple.“IPL is like a lottery, I won’t say anything more than that, because you’re restricted to bowl only four overs. With four overs, you cannot have too many strategies, so basically, you have to bowl what you know to do. You should do what you know best, simple as that.”Published on Apr 16, 2026 #MRF #Pace #Foundation #IPL #spotlightCharting #Praful #Hinge #Sakib #Hussains #meteoric #rise](https://i0.wp.com/ss-i.thgim.com/public/incoming/tmkxsn/article70867987.ece/alternates/FREE_1200/Praful_MRF.jpeg?ssl=1 "From MRF Pace Foundation to IPL spotlight—Charting Praful Hinge and Sakib Hussain’s meteoric rise Sunrisers Hyderabad’s bowlers have been among the most expensive in this Indian Premier League (IPL). Across their first four games, they have returned an economy of 10.42 and an average of 36.65, the third-highest in the competition, while their dot-ball percentage of 28.9 is the lowest in the tournament.The PowerPlay has been even worse. SRH’s four wickets in this phase have come at an economy of 12.04 and an average of 72.25, with seven different bowlers used in the first six overs and only one taking more than a single wicket.So, when Praful Hinge and Sakib Hussain were handed their IPL debuts against a free-swinging Rajasthan Royals line-up, expectations were low.Not, however, for M. Senthilnathan, head coach at the MRF Pace Foundation in Chennai.“Praful’s strength was always the line and length; the length he had was always very solid,” Senthilnathan told Sportstar. “When he keeps on hitting that length, there could always be some deviation in and out.”Monday night delivered. Hinge, as well as Sakib, combined for eight for 58 in eight overs, removing RR’s top five inside the first three overs. Hinge set it up with four wickets in his first two overs, including three in the opening over — the first bowler to do so in an IPL match — before Sakib ensured there was no way back.Built on repeatable lengthsHinge ripped through the RR top order with the new ball, first dismissing Vaibhav Suryavanshi with a delivery that climbed sharply on him, before splattering Dhruv Jurel’s stumps and having fellow debutant Lhuan-dre Pretorius caught in the deep.Senthilnathan, who worked with Hinge from 2023 to 2024, first met the 24-year-old during the foundation’s selection trials three years ago, where his potential was immediately apparent.“Praful had some injury, so he didn’t bowl much, but from whatever he bowled, we could see that he’s got something. Then he went to rehab, and we got him ready in the off-season from March to August,” he said.The recovery from a back injury dominated his 2023 stint, bringing its own physical and mental uncertainties.“He had a lot of doubts, everybody goes through it, whether he would be able to play and bowl, those kinds of things will come to anyone,” the coach said. “So, he was doing his rehab, and mentally we were talking to him, just telling him that he would be OK.“When he came to the bowling phase, we felt that if the L4 is fractured, then there must be something in his bowling that we need to get right,” Senthilnathan explained. “Nobody has such injuries without any technical fault; there will be something. He was falling off and trying to muscle the ball instead of going forward, so automatically the lateral refraction was happening.“So, we started doing a lot of short runs and putting in his mind what we needed to do—go forward rather than twisting or curving his back. We worked on it, and then he went in August, September and played. They (Vidarbha) were also surprised that he was ready, and he had a very reasonable season.”Hinge returned to MRF in 2024, this time focused on skill development.“We couldn’t put him into hard training when we met in 2023 because of his injury, so in 2024, we really took on the challenge, and he took the challenge as well. He worked on his bowling areas and then worked on skills, looking for the right areas, moving them all from that length.”Alongside the technical work came lessons in handling pressure from Aussie fast bowling great Glenn McGrath, who serves as Director at the MRF Pace Foundation.“A lot of mental work was also put in by Glenn, about taking the pressure and how to handle pressure in a crunch situation, and at the same time, when there is success, how to handle it,” he noted.“These are all very important points, only experience like Glenn McGrath’s would have been able to share.”Hinge also went on an exchange programme in Australia, where he trained on the centre wicket at the Gabba alongside current Australian pacers Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood and Jhye Richardson. Praful Hinge at the CA Centre of Excellence.
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Praful Hinge at the CA Centre of Excellence.
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“That’s a great experience for these boys,” Senthilnathan said. “When they go there, the wickets are different, they’ll be bowling to different kinds of batters, and the wicket is helpful. When the wicket is helpful, you have to be patient and hitting the right areas is what you need to look at. The length also differs in Australia, so all these things they learn, along with professionalism, how to keep yourself fit, what to eat, how to hydrate, how to train, and taking initiative.”That work was evident on Monday night. Hinge later said he had been “manifesting” his performance, but Senthilnathan had a more grounded explanation.“You can’t do what Jasprit Bumrah is doing, or Prasidh [Krishna] is doing, but Praful is known for something, which has taken him there. You have got to keep on repeating the same thing, so that’s why he’s confident, because he knows that he can bowl those lengths.”A peculiar action, and a slower ballWhile Hinge took the spotlight, Senthilnathan was equally impressed by Sakib.“Sakib will bowl 140kmph, and he’s very slippery, somewhere close to Bumrah, everything (his action) is quite fast. He’s got good speed; people have not seen his slower one, which he can also execute easily because of his action, so picking it also will be difficult for the batsmen,” he said.“I feel a lot of importance has gone to Praful, but this boy has not bowled any less; he’s given a lesser number of runs, and he’s also got four wickets.”Sakib, originally from Bihar, was introduced to the Pace Foundation through fellow cricketers and quickly made an impression.“Sakib comes from a very humble background, and everything was new for him when he first came here. Everything is taken care of, and they only have to worry about the training they have to do. That phase was good,” Senthilnathan said. Sakib with McGrath and Senthilnathan at the MRF Pace Foundation.
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Sakib with McGrath and Senthilnathan at the MRF Pace Foundation.
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He was later called up as a net bowler with Chennai Super Kings in IPL 2023, but an injury cut his stint short.“He did go to CSK as a net bowler, and they were all impressed, but to his bad luck, he had a stiff back,” Senthilnathan explained. “Had he been able to bowl, CSK probably would not have left him, so he went off. Next year, he went to Kolkata Knight Riders, and they actually won that year.”The match against RR showcased both sides of his skill set. He hurried an in-form Yashasvi Jaiswal into a catch at third man and later worked through the middle and lower order, including Donovan Ferreira, with a cleverly disguised slower ball after the batter had crossed fifty.Senthilnathan believes there is more to come.“I still think we have a lot to see of him at the death. Slower ones will come, and yorkers will come, so 140 kmph+ yorkers, if he handles them too, I think then it will be very good. Picking his action is a bit difficult; it’s not easy, not conventional. He sort of falls in front, so that means there’s no lateral reflection.”A look to the futureThe immediate challenge for SRH’s new fast-bowling pair is to sustain this impact through the rest of the IPL.For Senthilnathan, the message remains simple.“IPL is like a lottery, I won’t say anything more than that, because you’re restricted to bowl only four overs. With four overs, you cannot have too many strategies, so basically, you have to bowl what you know to do. You should do what you know best, simple as that.”Published on Apr 16, 2026 #MRF #Pace #Foundation #IPL #spotlightCharting #Praful #Hinge #Sakib #Hussains #meteoric #rise")
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