Subhayan Chakraborty in Melbourne
The cult of Jasprit Bumrah continues to grow as India and Australia gear up for the much-awaited Boxing Day Test at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, starting December 26. Before the Border-Gavaskar Trophy started, the chatter was mainly about Virat Kohli or Rohit Sharma – the two megastars of Indian cricket. When the Indian team landed Down Under, the Aussie newspapers flashed photographs of Shubman Gill, Rishabh Pant, and Yashasvi Jaiswal, praising them with a variety of adjectives in English, Hindi, and even Punjabi. The message was clear: the Indian team is in the country, and the batting stars are going to be the show-stealers. But the real show-stopper from the visitors has been Jasprit Bumrah, whose stardom has reached a different level during the ongoing series.
As the series has progressed, the chatter around Bumrah has grown. In the past, whenever India played, no matter who attended media interactions, someone inevitably asked a question about Kohli or Rohit. Those answers are the most sellable ones. In this series, the same could be said about Bumrah. At least one question about Bumrah, if not more, has become common on this tour.
Bumrah’s performance, action, class, and decisiveness have been the topics of discussion among both Indian and Australian media. His 53 wickets at 17.15 on Australian soil means he has the best average of any visiting pace bowler (minimum 50 wickets) – a list that includes the likes of Fred Trueman, the West Indies Titans and Richard Hadlee, to name just a few. It’s Bumrah’s performances that have done most of the talking. When he speaks to reporters, his calmness, assurance, clarity of thought and leadership qualities are on full display. It feels like he is speaking as a man who is ruling the cricketing world.
“He is the greatest Indian pacer of this era,” Harbhajan Singh told RevSportz. “Jasprit Bumrah is unbelievable. He has no match at all. Jassi jaisa koi nahi (There is no one like Jasprit). I have been saying it for a long time now. I saw him very early in his career for Mumbai Indians. A phenomenal bowler, an outstanding bowler.
“Pick any world-class batter and ask them who is the toughest bowler to face in the world right now, and Jasprit Bumrah’s name will be at the top of the list. His skill set is on a different level.
“He reads the pitch early on, understands it completely, and bowls accordingly. His wrist, the subtlety in his arm, and his action, separate him from other top pacers. And that is why his deliveries have extra zip even after pitching. To pick his lengths early on is a tough challenge for any batter.”
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Bumrah has been one of India’s best performers for a while now, yet it’s the batters who make the majority of headlines. The Indian ace has been a different beast altogether, scalping 21 wickets in three Tests at a mind-boggling average of 10.90 and a strike rate of 25.1 – again the best by a visiting bowler (minimum 20 wickets). Australian players and coaches, during the ongoing series, have spoken highly of Bumrah. Be it Pat Cummins, Travis Head, Alex Carey, Nathan Lyon, or anyone asked about Bumrah, they have nothing but good things to say about the Indian pacer.
The media interaction with Sam Konstas and Sean Abbott painted a similar picture as the duo spoke highly of the 31-year-old pacer. “He has any delivery on tap, the accuracy, the pace. He just ticks all the boxes, session after session,” Abbott said on Monday. “There’s not been one time when he’s bowled in this series where he hasn’t been putting pressure on the Australian batsmen. I tip my hat off to him; it’s been unreal. We’re seeing a master at work.
“Maybe it was a good thing he never had it coached out of him. He just remained Jasprit Bumrah for his whole life so far and his whole career. We all get to witness (his bowling) … he’s one of the greatest we’ve seen. At this level, you want to take on the best at their best. I’m pretty glad he didn’t change because we get to experience something different.”
Bumrah has dismissed Usman Khawaja, Nathan McSweeney, and Marnus Labuschagne a combined 10 times in the series. McSweeney has already been dropped from the Australian squad for the final two Tests in Melbourne and Sydney, with talented young opener Konstas set to debut in the Boxing Day Test after impressing in the age-group circuit, domestic cricket, and recently against India in the two-day warm-up match in Canberra where he smashed a thunderous century for the Prime Minister’s XI. While Konstas didn’t reveal his game plan against India’s Test vice-captain, he also hailed him as the “best in the world”.
“I have my plans against Bumrah, but of course, I am not going to say what they are,” said Konstas. “I am generally going to put pressure back on the bowler. Jasprit Bumrah is the best in the world, but they are all good bowlers.”
With Bumrah at the peak of his powers and the series all square at 1-1, the Indian team will again look to their pace spearhead to do the heavy lifting on what is expected to be a spicy MCG pitch in the Boxing Day Test, set to shatter the crowd record for the iconic stadium.
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