Selection as a standby in India's T20 World Cup squad seemed like one kind of an opening. Thereafter, a berth on the tour of Zimbabwe as well as in both the T20I and ODI squads for the upcoming games against Sri Lanka certainly indicates Khaleel Ahmed is a part of Team India's long-term plans.

In the recent Zimbabwe T20Is in Harare, his pace colleague Mukesh Kumar finished with eight wickets from three appearances, while Khaleel picked up only three from as many matches. Yet, the 26-year-old left-arm quick was preferred over the Bengal pacer on the Sri Lanka tour, which begins with the T20I series in Pallekele on Saturday.

What stood out for Khaleel was his accuracy along with pace. Agreed, Zimbabwe's batting was mediocre, but for a pacer — especially someone who was making his international comeback after more than four-and-a-half years — to finish with an economy rate of 6.81 isn't quite the easiest of tasks, considering the format.

"Accuracy in white-ball cricket is paramount. Khaleel has maintained that alongside bowling at a good pace, hitting the 140kmph mark consistently. We all know Mukesh too is a good bowler and he has proved that.

"But nowadays even during training, batsmen deal with even 150kmph-plus deliveries at nets. So, during game time, a speed of 128-134kmph gives them just that bit of extra time. Speed-wise thus Khaleel has that edge," a BCCI official told The Telegraph.

"Besides, his selection also for the ODI series implies he has been given another chance to establish himself in India's limited-overs teams. Being a left-arm pacer, he can also be a like-for-like replacement for Arshdeep Singh. He can definitely be an option when Arshdeep isn't available."

If Khaleel finds his place in the XI during the Sri Lanka ODIs which begin on August 2 in Colombo, it will be his first 50-over appearance in almost five years.

Focus on swing

His performance in this year's IPL for Delhi Capitals wasn't mindblowing. But taking 17 scalps from 14 matches, especially when even 200-plus totals were extremely difficult to defend on most of the pitches, was indeed a commendable job. That did impress the selectors to a certain extent as they then chose Khaleel as a standby in India's T20 World Cup squad.

Ahead of the IPL, Khaleel had worked on swing and consistently hitting the area just short of good length with former Rajasthan cricketer P. Krishnakumar, who's currently the bowling coach of Jammu and Kashmir.

"Khaleel fell off the radar (after November 2019) also because of injuries. I worked with him before this year's IPL and during last season's Ranji Trophy. Pace wasn't his problem, what he lacked was swing. We started working on that," Krishnakumar, also a bowling coach at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Bengaluru, stated.

"Initially, he was a bit apprehensive. He used to say, 'White ball toh zyaadaa swing hota nahi. Sirf 7-8 overs (The white ball swings for a maximum of 7-8 overs). I told him, 'Pehle 3-4 overs toh swing hota hai. Woh time utilise karle (For the first 3-4 overs, it swings. Utilise that time).

"He then understood swing was as important as pace alone wouldn't help. He concentrated on that, especially when the ball was new, while he also gradually got his length right by pitching it in the 6-7-metre (just short of good length) of the pitch. He fared better in Ranji and looked much sharper in the IPL," Krishnakumar explained.

Khaleel would only hope he keeps reaping the rewards of this hard work.