Indian skipper Rohit Sharma recalled Jasprit Bumrah’s match-winning spell at Vizag against England in the recently concluded Test series, which the hosts won by 4-1. On a flat deck, Bumrah returned with impressive figures of 6-45 in the first innings as he got the ball to reverse.
The Indian gun fast bowler bagged three more wickets in the second essay and returned with match figures of 9-91. Thus, he was awarded the Player of the Match for his fine performance.
Bumrah took 19 wickets in four Test matches against England at an impressive average of 16.89. The right-arm pacer has a fantastic record while playing in Indian conditions as he has scalped 33 wickets in eight Test matches at an average of 16.36.
“That Bumrah spell at Vizag was unreal. On a flat pitch and 35-36 degrees, it is nearly impossible for a fast bowler to bowl that spell. And then comes Bumrah, who gets the ball to reverse both sides and brings the team into the game. I have never seen any fast bowler in India bowled the way he has bowled and got us those wickets,” Rohit Sharma said in an interview with team45ro.
On the other hand, Rohit heaped praise on Yashasvi Jaiswal, who scored a fine knock of 209 runs in the first innings at Vizag and scored more than half of India’s score of 396. Jaiswal scored a total of 712 runs at an average of 89 in five Test matches and was awarded Player of the Series.
“(Yashasvi) Jaiswal’s innings (209) covered half the percentage of the team’s score, while the next best was 30-40. For us to come back into the Test series and perhaps win the next three matches on the trot, someone had to put their hand up to bail the team out in the second match. And for the same, there was Bumrah and Jaiswal,” Rohit Sharma added
On the other hand, when India was on the mat at 177-7 after England posted 353 runs at Ranchi, Dhruv Jurel scored a fine knock of 90 runs and added 76 runs with Kuldeep Yadav, who gave him great support.
Jurel’s knock helped India post 307 runs in the first innings and reduced the deficit to 46 runs. Moreover, Jurel scored an unbeaten knock of 39 runs in the second essay in the run-chase of 192 and thus he was awarded Player of the Match.
“The partnership (76 runs) between (Dhruv) Jurel and Kuldeep in the fourth Test at Ranchi turned out to be series-defining because that is where we won the series. Otherwise, it would have been 2-2. In the end, on Day 4, when Jurel and (Shubhman) Gill batted when the team was 120/5, we thought we were on the back foot and a 40-run partnership was needed at the very least,” Rohit Sharma said.
“But then, Jurel and Gill came forward and showed what they were made of. We got to see how, in such a situation, these guys stitched a partnership and played that brand of cricket while absorbing pressure. Seeing from the outside, it was a sheer delight to watch these guys batting it out in that situation. That got me thinking that, yes, we now have a great future in cricket in our hands with these players,” he concluded.
Indian players will now be seen in action in the IPL.
