Jasprit Bumrah was gutted to not deliver even a single over for the Indian team on the final day of the Sydney Test, which had much to offer for the pacers. However, he feels it’s important to respect your body given the enormous amount of workload he has to take up in the coming months.
Bumrah emerged as the finest bowler in the series with 32 wickets at an average of 13.06, despite delivering only 10 overs in Sydney. He led the Indian team to a dominating victory in the Perth Test by picking a total of eight wickets. He continued his impressive performances to keep the Indian team in the game on most occasions. In total, the right-arm pacer bowled 151.2 overs (908 balls) which took a toll on his body, and resulted in him having a back spasm.
Jasprit Bumrah revealed that he started to feel discomfort on Day 2, which forced him to undergo scans. Here’s what Bumrah said after the conclusion of the series in a post-match presentation:
“Little frustrating, sometimes you have to respect your body, you can’t fight your body. So they’re a little disappointing at the end that, you know, probably missed out on the spiciest wicket in the series, but yeah, that’s the way it is. Sometimes you have to accept what it is and, you know, move forward.”
“There was a little bit of discomfort so I wanted to check it out after the first over of my second spell (Day 2),” he added.
Although India lost the Border-Gavaskar Trophy (BGT) 3-1, Bumrah feels it was a great learning curve for the youngsters who toured Down Under for the first time in their career.
Usman Khawaja relieved of not facing Jasprit Bumrah anymore
Australian opening batter Usman Khawaja expressed his relief at not being pitted against Jasprit Bumrah in the near future. The 38-year-old is expected to make his final red-ball appearance in the World Test Championship (WTC) final against South Africa in June.
Bumrah made Khawaja his bunny in the BGT and got the better of him on six occasions. Meanwhile, the southpaw finished the series with 184 runs at an average of around 21. Khawaja produced his best knock of 41 in the final test in Sydney, which helped the side to win by six wickets. However, the veteran batter believes facing the right-arm pacer on a spicy SCG wicket would have been an “absolute nightmare”.
“I was just getting Bumrah’d. It was tough work. I have to face this guy with the new ball every single time. you never want to see anyone injured and it’s a shame he was but thank God for us. Today would’ve been an absolute nightmare facing him on that wicket. As soon as we didn’t see him out there we thought ‘alright, we’ve got a chance here,'” Usman Khawaja said.
“He’s the toughest bowler I’ve ever faced. And I have faced him in 2018. he got me out once, he was alright, he was good but he has been something else this year. He has got his tail up,” he added.
Moreover, Usman Khawaja lauded Jasprit Bumrah’s growth as a fast bowler and pointed out him devising different tactics for every player.
“The wickets have definitely helped him. He is 6 years more mature. He understands his skills, who he is bowling to. He has different plans for everyone. I always felt like no matter how good a bowler is I can always get something to score runs, but I did not get anything at all from him. He’s just so hard. I don’t have to face him again, thank God,” concluded Khawaja.
