Former India cricketer Robin Uthappa highlighted an interesting aspect about Jasprit Bumrah’s bowling, citing that the ace pacer tends to lose his rhythm when he tries too hard to take wickets.

Uthappa’s assessment came after the second India versus Australia T20I at MCG, where Bumrah struggled with the new ball and failed to claim a wicket in the powerplay. While the right-arm quick struck twice in his final over, the breakthrough came too late to change India’s fortunes.

After India’s innings folded for a paltry 125, the onus was on Bumrah to pick early wickets, but Mitchell Marsh and Travis Head launched a brutal assault on the Indian bowlers right from the word go. The pair put on 51 runs for the opening wicket before Varun Chakaravarthy got the better of Head but Australia kept going hard and overhauled the target in just 13.2 overs.

Reflecting on India’s bowling effort while defending a below-par total, Uthappa said that an early breakthrough or two could have shifted momentum but India’s bowlers tried too hard for wickets and eventually deviated from their plans.

"When we were bowling after scoring 125, the start was very important. If we had picked up two or three wickets in the first three or four overs, the game could have been closer because we have quality spinners in the middle overs. I felt we were probably trying too hard to pick up wickets. So we got a little wayward," Uthappa said on Star Sports.

"I have observed that whenever Bumrah gets desperate to pick up wickets, he becomes slightly wayward, and when he is disciplined and hits a good line and length, he mostly picks up wickets. Australia took full advantage of that waywardness at the start, the way we started with the ball in the second innings," he added.

With this loss in Melbourne, India conceded 1-0 lead to Australia in the five-match series. The third T20I will be held in Hobart on Sunday (November 2).