I developed my deadly Yorkers at Mumbai Indians with Malinga: Jasprit Bumrah

In an exclusive interview to the Times of India, Bumrah talked about his ability to bowl Yorkers, which earned him praise from the Indian captain MS Dhoni.

“I used to bowl yorkers from an early stage with tennis balls. But it was at Mumbai Indians (MI) nets where I learnt to develop it as a lethal weapon. Lasith Malinga is a proponent of the art and was impressed with me. He taught me how and when to use yorkers. He would tell me how to vary the pace of the yorker and not to be predictable. In fact, I learnt to bowl the slow yorker from him,” Bumrah told ToI.

The unorthodox action of the youngster has also helped him in taking wickets, but Bumrah feels that also brings certain disadvantages, which he needs to be careful about.

“It certainly does because the batsmen remain confused and they take some time to figure out my release. It gives me the freedom to catch batsmen by surprise and bowl anywhere. But the action also has its own weakness. With this action, I need to focus a lot on my fitness because it puts a lot of stress on my knees,” Bumrah said.

The 22-year old Gujarat pacer is now looking forward to the 2016 ICC T20 World Cup in India in March and feels that the experience of playing in the IPL will help him in continuing his good run.

“By playing in the IPL, I have a fair idea of the strengths and weaknesses of the batsmen. So I will be ready to prove myself. Playing in India will be a different challenge and there will be pressure on me. So the aim is to cement my place in the side by performing to my strengths. I am only going to let the ball do the talking,” Bumrah signed off.   

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