The Rise and Rise of Jasprit Bumrah
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Jasprit Bumrah is one of the best fast bowlers in modern-day cricket as he has dominated against almost every opponent that he has played against thus far. The fast bowler always adapts to the conditions that he plays in which makes him one of the most successful pacers in the history of the game.
Jasprit Bumrah is, without a doubt, one of the best bowlers in world cricket at the moment. The story of a fast bowler with an unconventional action, who has gone on to dominate international cricket is nothing short of miraculous. The right-arm fast bowler, during his domestic career, played for Gujarat, and made his first-class debut against Vidarbha in 2013. Since then, his career has only gone upwards. Whenever he takes the ball in his hand it seems as he is here to make a statement.
The pacer was never part of the under-19 world cup when he belonged to that age group, unlike many other young cricketers whose name gets popular because of their achievements in the tournament. Rather he worked hard in the domestic circuit and grabbed every opportunity that he got with both hands to showcase his talent.
Jasprit Bumrah's first T20 game at the domestic level was back in 2012 in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy against Maharashtra. However, his first memorable performance came in the final of the tournament against Punjab in which he managed to pick 3 wickets for 14 runs, which helped Gujarat beat Punjab in the final. Signs of his abilities were there for people to see but none new that the bowler with an unusual bowling action from Gujarat would go on to dominate in international cricket.
After watching his heroics in domestic cricket it was his time to showcase his talent in the Indian Premier League (IPL). Mumbai Indians (MI) roped in the pacer and he made his debut against Royal Challengers Bangalore in 2013. Bumrah grabbed attention immediately as he managed to dismiss batting superstar Virat Kohli after being smashed for three boundaries. He took three wickets during the game and only played 2 games during the 2013 season. He gained the confidence of his franchise and he was bought back by them for Rs 1.20 crore.
The pacers' performances got better every season with the Mumbai Indians and it was in 2016 that he received his maiden call-up to be a part of the Indian cricket team in the 2016 ODI series against Australia. After making his debut in the ODI series, he also got a chance to make his T20I debut against the same opponent.
Jasprit Bumrah in his first year of playing One Day Internationals for India managed to pick 17 wickets with an economy rate of 3.64. As far as T20I cricket is concerned, the fast bowler in his first year took a record-breaking 28 wickets with an economy rate of 6.63. These statistics prove what a phenomenal debut year Jasprit Bumrah had and how tough it was for batters when they faced him.
The Indian fast bowler also got to learn a lot from Sri Lankan legend Lasith Malinga when they played together for Mumbai Indians. Like Lasith Malinga, Jasprit Bumrah troubled top-class batters with his unplayable yorkers as many of them looked clueless when facing him.
Under Virat Kohli's leadership at the international level, India developed one of the best fast bowling attacks with the capability of taking 20 wickets in a Test match irrespective of the conditions. Jasprit Bumrah was already the leader of the pack in white-ball cricket, but he was yet to prove his mettle in Test cricket. Many believed that the Indian team management wanted to protect the fast bowler from sustaining any injuries which is why he was given his Test cap in 2018 although it was known that he was one of the best in the shorter formats of the game.
Jasprit Bumrah made his Test debut against South Africa in their own country back in 2018. He managed to take 14 wickets in his very first Test series against the Proteas at an economy rate of 3.15. He ended his first year in Test cricket with 48 wickets which is a phenomenal figure for any bowler.
With Bumrah becoming a regular in all formats of the game, his rise in the Indian team, as well as world cricket, became more and more prominent. Oppositions had started fearing the fast bowler and were trying different strategies against him. Some wanted to see out his overs and not give him any wickets. However, this approach from the teams was not working as he was comfortably taking wickets without any problems.
Jasprit Bumrah became the unofficial leader of India's pace attack in every format after his exploits in Test cricket. Virat Kohli in international matches and Rohit Sharma in the IPL would be seen turning to Bumrah whenever they needed a wicket. More often than not the fast bowler would give his captain the desired result and proved to be one of the biggest match-winners in any team that he played for.
The team management and the selectors rewarded Jasprit Bumrah for his consistent performances by naming him the vice-captain of the Indian team during the Sri Lanka series. Rohit Sharma also praised the fast bowler and had said that Jasprit Bumrah has a "great mind and it's a great step for him to step into the leadership role".
Jasprit Bumrah is crucial to India's fortunes in the upcoming T20 World Cup, scheduled to take place in Australia later this year. It will be interesting to see how he handles pressure in ICC events where the margin of error is almost negligible. The Indian fast bowler still has a long career ahead of him and it is possible that he can go on to become one of the greatest to have ever played the game.
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