Former Pakistan captain Salman Butt has compared Indian pacers Jasprit Bumrah to Pakistan pace bowling greats Wasim Akram and Waqar Younis and called him the Ferrari and Lamborghini of fast bowlers.
Ever since his Test debut in 2018, Jasprit Bumrah has been a revelation in the format. He became one of the fastest Indian bowlers to pick up 50 Test wickets and registered India's third Test-hat-trick.
Bumrah has received praise from former fast bowling greats like Sir Curtly Ambrose and Sir Richard Hadlee. Both have lauded Bumrah but showed concern about his fitness and ability to prolong his career in all formats due to his unique bowling action.
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"In simple words, he is not a Toyota or a Corolla. Bowlers like him are of the caliber of Ferrari, Lamborghini… the big end cars, the special event cars. With such bowlers, you need to ensure you use them judiciously. With him, you have to select the occasions and conditions properly. And when you do that, you increase your timelines with him. The more he is used in valuable matches, the better output he will give. Bumrah is unique and at the moment, he is one of the best," Butt said on his YouTube channel.
In fact, Butt compared Bumrah to the two Ws of the Pakistan team, Waqar Younis and Wasim Akram, and said that Bumrah is worth to the India team, what Wasim and Waqar were worth to the Pakistan team in the 90s.
"Bumrah is the one the captain turns to. If you look at Rohit Sharma, he mostly makes him bowl one over at the beginning and saves him for the last six overs. Why? Because the captain trusts him that if the opposition needs to get 30-40 off them, in Bumrah's over, he won't let you get the runs and pick up wickets too," Butt added.
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"His worth in the Indian team is similar to Wasim and Waqar for Pakistan. They did not allow 30-40 runs to be scored with five wickets remaining. They would get them out. Bumrah has that quality that wins India matches in the end; his dot ball percentage is great, has great control over his yorkers. He can deceive in his action, slower ball, and the quick bouncer. He is a priceless asset for his team and captain,” Butt further said.
Jasprit Bumrah will be in action when India takes on New Zealand in the final of the WTC and then England in a series of five Test matches.
