Jasprit Bumrah has been receiving a lot of praises for his performance in the first Test against England at the Trent Bridge Cricket Ground in Nottingham. Bumrah redeemed himself and gave nightmares to the batting line-up of England as he picked up a nine-wicket haul, claiming four wickets in the first innings and five in the second.
Jasprit was struggling with his form over the last few matches for team India. Infact in the World Test Championship (WTC) final against New Zealand, Bumrah went wicketless as team India lost the clash by eight wickets. He was back in his element as he ran through the opposition with his impeccable bowling.
While his performance in the first Test is being considered as a blockbuster comeback, seems like his teammate KL Rahul doesn’t feel that it was a comeback.
Recently, at a post-match conference, KL Rahul was asked about Jasprit Bumrah’s “comeback” to form. However, while responding to the answer, KL Rahul expressed surprise that Bumrah’s performance in the 1st test match is being considered as a “comeback“.
He feels that Bumrah has proved himself time and again and he is the team’s number one bowler and match-winner. He said:
“Sir, I don’t know why you are saying that (Jasprit) Bumrah has made a comeback.”
“Every time, in every game, in every condition he has proved himself and he is our number one bowler. We are happy that he is doing what he is (has) been doing since he started playing Test cricket. Wherever he has played, he has been a match-winner for us. We are happy that he has done once again, what he does best.”
Apart from Jasprit Bumrah, the other three pacers — Mohammed Shami, Shardul Thakur, and Mohammed Siraj – also gave a stunning performance as they chipped in with crucial wickets. While Shami and Shardul Thakur picked four wickets each, on the other hand, Siraj got three wickets.
Further, Rahul also praised the Indian bowling attack and the way they performed in the 1st test. He stated that team India stuck to their plans with the ball and was rewarded for the same. He said:
“The way we bowled in the first innings and the discipline that we showed after losing the toss and bowling first (was a takeaway). It felt like team which won the toss had an advantage and we bowled with a lot of discipline. How Mohammed Shami and Bumrah started and how Shardul (Thakur) and Mohammed Siraj continued, how all of them worked together and bowled in the right channels. We saw there were a lot of misses but the way they stuck to their plans was great to see and they got the rewards.”
He added:
“Sometimes the bowlers can get carried away when lot is happening off the pitch and it says a lot about our bowling unit. There is a lot of experience in our bowling and they understand what exactly is expected of each one of them,”
