From Titans net bowler to Test hero: The long-awaited rise of Manav Suthar

When Manav Suthar arrived at Gujarat Titans as a net bowler during the franchise's inaugural season, he was little more than a familiar name to Aashish Kapoor. The former India spinner had tracked him since his Under-19 days, but for much of the Titans setup, he was simply another young left-arm spinner.

That changed quickly. "The first day, second day that he came and bowled, everybody was his fan," Kapoor recalls.

Five years later, as Suthar marked his Test debut in Mullanpur with match figures of 7 for 62 and the Player of the Match award, including a 6 for 33 — the second-best return by an Indian on debut innings after Narendra Hirwani — Kapoor was watching the latest chapter of a story he had seen unfolding for years.

Both Kapoor and head coach Ashish Nehra had watched Suthar develop inside the Gujarat Titans setup from a net bowler into a squad member. For more than a year, the pair had discussed how his bowling would translate to Test cricket.

Suthar arrived for his debut with 136 wickets from 30 First-Class matches, 34 more in List A cricket, and 27 wickets from 10 India A appearances. He had also taken four wickets in his lone Under-19 Test and 10 in three Under-19 ODIs.

"No, I don't think so," Kapoor says when asked if the performance came as a surprise.

"Nehra and me, we keep talking. We've been discussing here for the last one year that Jadeja is there. But the day he goes and Manav comes in against teams who play spin the way they play… He said if Manav bowls on those wickets, he'll rip through. Even on good wickets, he's a bowler with the kind of action he has and the spin he imparts."

The confidence was born from years of familiarity. Kapoor's association stretches back to Suthar's days coming through Rajasthan cricket.

Suthar's entry into the Gujarat Titans ecosystem owed as much to circumstance as planning. During the inaugural season, operating within a bio-bubble, the coaching staff needed net bowlers who could stay with the squad. Another Rajasthan cricketer was initially in line, but delays opened the door for Suthar.

"So I said to Nehra that let's call this Manav," Kapoor said. "The first day, second day that he came and bowled, everybody was his fan. Ever since, he's been with us. He was a net bowler for two years, I think. Then we picked him. For the last three years, he's been with us."

The phrase Kapoor uses repeatedly is familiarity. The six-for in Mullanpur was viewed as an outcome years in the making. The reason, according to Kapoor, is visible every time Suthar releases the ball — the amount of spin he generates.

"The kind of action he has and the work he puts on the ball. If other spinners spin the ball a little, he'll spin a lot. If they're not able to spin at all, he'll spin a little bit. So he's always going to be a little bit ahead," says Kapoor.

While many spinners become dependent on conditions, Suthar's ability to impart revolutions gives him a higher baseline. Surfaces offering modest assistance become more dangerous.

That quality has been evident for years. "He's been doing this for the last six years. It's not something new. Even in his Under-19 days, he was still able to do the same things."

But Kapoor adds that the 23-year-old needs to develop his game smartness. "How to set fields. You can't keep having the same field for all batsmen. If the wicket is flat, if the partnership is going on, how to think the batsman out. Bowling-wise, you run in and bowl, he'll do that a whole day. But at that point, you can change things. Make the batsman start thinking why is he putting the field there? He might do a stupid thing and give you his wicket."

Kapoor reveals conversations this year have focused on technical refinements. "We've been speaking about his basics. Holding his front hand for a little while more. His foot placement, his back foot placement. When he stands and bowls, it's parallel to the crease. But when he runs, it's slightly pointing towards covers. So we try to work on that."

There is also effort to add another dimension. Traditionally, Suthar's deliveries drift away from right-handers before spinning further away. While effective, it creates a pattern opponents can prepare for.

"What I've spoken to him about is he needs to get the drift into the batsman rather than away. Because away, and then spin also away, it is one kind of thing. If the ball is coming into the batsman and then going away, like an off-spinner drifts it away and brings it in… People are going to get used to it. He has to be one step ahead."

Kapoor recalled one instance when Suthar ventured too far outside his comfort zone during an IPL match and ended up with an expensive outing. "He tried to bowl over-the-gate yorkers and got clobbered for 25-27 runs. I asked him, 'What are you trying? You're not a fast bowler. One odd yorker you tried, okay. It didn't work out. You should have continued with your spin'."

The fundamentals have remained unchanged. "His bowling is going to be the same whether it's a five-day match or a one-day match. He's going to bowl with the same revolutions, try to spin the ball from length and try to get the batsman in."

The six wickets in Mullanpur announced Suthar to a wider audience. He became only the second Indian spinner to win POTM on debut, after R Ashwin in 2011. For Kapoor, the performance was validation of beliefs formed years earlier. If the debut confirmed what those around him already knew about his ability to spin the ball, the challenge now is ensuring he remains ahead of those trying to decode him.