Red-ball cricket is ‘pinnacle’ of cricket, meant everything to me: Manav Suthar

For Manav Suthar, Test format is the “pinnacle” of cricket, and the India left-arm spinner revealed that he was practising with red-ball even during IPL 2026 to stay on top of his game.

The 23-year-old Suthar made a strong impression on his maiden outing, returning 6/33 and 1/29 along with a brisk knock to set up a heavy innings and 300-run victory over Afghanistan in their only Test here.

“From the very first day I started playing and as I progressed through the ranks, red-ball cricket meant everything to me,” Suthar told JioHotstar.

“It is the pinnacle of the sport. So, whether I was playing U-19 cricket or the Ranji Trophy, the goal was always to play Test cricket for India. Kuldeep (Yadav) bhai’s speech while presenting me with the cap was very motivating. Everyone encouraged and motivated me a lot, so it felt really special.

“Gautam (Gambhir) sir and the skipper (Shubman Gill) informed me that I would be making my debut. It was a very proud moment because, ever since I started playing, it had been my dream, my father’s dream, and everyone’s dream for me to play Test cricket for India,” Suthar added.

Suthar, who played for Gujarat Titans in this year’s IPL, said he wanted to be ready for the opportunity of playing Test cricket and practiced with the red ball during the league.

“When my name came up in the team, I was practising with the red ball during the IPL as well, thinking about how I would approach things if given the opportunity,” he said.

“After coming here (Mullanpur), I had three or four long practice sessions. With bowling, it’s not really about how many hours you put in. If you enjoy bowling, you can bowl 20-25 overs without even realising it so the key is to keep bowling as much as you can.” Suthar said he did not want to get carried away even as the pitch offered assistance while bowling his stock delivery.

“When they were bowling, a few deliveries were turning. When I was batting, the odd ball was holding up so I felt there might be some assistance for the spinners on that track. As soon as I bowled my first over, the ball was turning, so I tried to bowl my stock ball as much as possible on that wicket,” he said.

“I didn’t want to get carried away, but my focus was on consistently putting the ball in the right area. Since the beginning, I have focused on spot-bowling, and whatever consistency I have today is because of that,” Suthar added.