Myth that I broke into Indian team through IPL, claims Jasprit Bumrah

A pacer who is on the extreme end of the ‘unorthodox’ spectrum, Jasprit Bumrah made his IPL debut for Mumbai Indians in 2013 and instantly caught eyes due to his mystifying action. Three years later, in 2016, the Gujarat pacer made his national debut and ever since, Bumrah has been widely regarded as the first out-and-out IPL product in the country. 

However, the 26-year-old, in an Instagram chat with Yuvraj Singh, revealed how he is annoyed when people claim that he broke into the Indian team due to the IPL and went on to term it a ‘myth’.

Bumrah said that it was consistent performances in both the Vijay Hazare and the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy that helped him break into the Indian team and not just the IPL. That is also, interestingly, the truth, as prior to his national debut, Bumrah had picked just 11 wickets in 17 games for Mumbai Indians.

"That I made it to the Indian team by my performances in the IPL is a myth. 2013 is when I came into the IPL (for Mumbai Indians) then 2013, 2014, 2015 I was not playing regularly. I did well in (Vijay) Hazare and in the domestic circuit then I came into the Indian team in 2016," Bumrah told Yuvraj Singh in an Instagram chat, reported Sportstar. 

The 26-year-old pacer, who was once seen as a specialist limited-overs bowler, also expressed his love and admiration for the game’s longest format and stated that Test cricket is what makes a bowler complete. Bumrah, who has picked 68 wickets in just 14 Tests, believes that any pacer will have to play Test cricket to survive in the long run.

"Bowlers come up to me and say ODI T20 thik hai (ODIs, T20I is okay). But they forget, Tests make you a complete cricketer. You have to play Test cricket to survive in the long run.”